Hannah Rasmukhina A Ukrainian lawyer, attorney and international humanitarian law expert who serves as the Head of War and Justice at the Media Initiative for Human Rights. He leads the prosecution of war crimes and national security cases, focusing on accountability for crimes committed during Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. A graduate of Yaroslav Mudry National Law University, he has worked in human rights protection since 2014 with the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen The Media Initiative for Human Rights spoke with Hanna Rasamakhina, head of war and justice, about accountability in Ukraine’s war-crimes system. Rasamakhina distinguishes between Russian atrocities and lesser alleged crimes by Ukrainian activists, emphasizes the need for credible evidence and investigations, and argues that Ukrainian detention conditions for Russian prisoners generally comply with the Geneva Conventions. He also reflected on the limited media attention these proceedings received.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Another challenging aspect is that war puts people under stress. It’s not entirely black and white. Internationally, moral authority rests largely with President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukraine. But there are also domestic crimes.
What war crimes committed by Ukrainians concern you and what is being done about them? Far too many crimes have been committed by the Russian Federation and its armed forces under the Kremlin and President Vladimir Putin. However, this question is still worth considering, even given the disparity of scale.
For example, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2023-2024, there were documented cases of Ukrainian armed forces killing Russian prisoners of war. One report mentions 26 cases, although the verified number is 25.
By comparison, the Russian armed forces killed more than 300 prisoners of war in Ukraine. It is the same class of crime, but on a very different scale. At the same time, these crimes were committed by Ukrainian activists. Internally, what should also be done in response to those cases?
Hannah Rasmukhina: We do not study this category of crime, so I cannot say for sure about the number or specific characteristics of such cases. I know that some of these cases are currently in court and ongoing trials, but I don’t have more details.
If we talk about the Russian prisoners of war held in Ukraine, in my view the situation is clear. We can monitor Russian prisoners of war with video evidence who have returned to Russia. At the same time, we can observe Ukrainian prisoners of war who have returned to Ukraine. Their physical condition is significantly different.
Russian POWs appear to be in relatively good physical condition, while Ukrainian POWs are often severely debilitated. This contrast is striking.
Detention facilities for Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine are accessible to the International Committee of the Red Cross. These facilities are monitored, and based on the available monitoring it can be said that the Geneva Conventions are being followed in these locations.
This reflects the difference in the status of prisoners of war in Ukraine compared to Russia.
Jacobsen: What about crimes committed by Ukrainian military personnel against civilians? Do you mean crimes against Ukrainian civilians or Russian civilians in the Kursk region?
Rasamukhina: This is an important distinction. These are different situations with different legal contexts.
If we talk about the Kursk region, I have read several reports by Russian researchers about alleged crimes against civilians. In my view, many of these reports lack credibility.
For example, one described an incident where a civilian vehicle was hit multiple times by a drone, yet all occupants reportedly survived. Such accounts raise serious questions about reliability.
If incidents of murder, rape or torture are verified, they are likely to be more clearly documented. So far, I have not come across a case that seems credible based on the available evidence.
If we talk about crimes committed against Ukrainian civilians and Ukrainian military personnel on Ukrainian territory, I don’t have enough information. Perhaps there are some cases, and they should be investigated, but I cannot give details.
Regarding the number of military personnel in Ukraine, if there is an army of 100,000 people, few people will commit crimes. However, I do not have verified information about specific cases.
Jacobsen: What about cases in which a prosecutor, lawyer or judge is compromised on behalf of the Russian Federation, not as an official agent, but through favors, money or undue generosity? What happens in such cases?
Rasamukhina: As I’ve said before, I’m not aware of cases where judges accept money in these proceedings, especially since often neither party is available to offer such an incentive. The accused are usually in Russia or dead.
I am also not aware of any cases where Ukrainian defense lawyers have direct contact with alleged Russian military personnel. From my experience and communication with lawyers involved in these cases, such communication does not happen. There are also security considerations, and lawyers working within state systems of legal aid have no incentive to engage in such behaviour.
In this context, the system, as it relates to these cases, appears to be largely free of corruption. I am not aware of such cases and it is difficult to imagine how this situation would play out. The Russian Federation generally ignores these trials.
If you’re referring to a situation where a judge seems unusually lenient toward Russian military personnel, I’m not aware of such a case. Based on our observational experience, I cannot recall an example.
Sentences for convicted Russian military personnel follow a consistent range, typically 10, 12 or 15 years in prison. Of the approximately 150 sentences issued so far, most fall within this range
Jacobsen: When the media covers Ukraine’s war crimes and justice system, what do they overemphasize and what do they fail to report? What should they focus on?
Rasamukhina: One of the main organizations covering these trials is the Media Initiative for Human Rights However, this topic is not currently a major focus in the wider media environment.
Some local media outlets report on it, but it’s not a leading issue. If you review major Ukrainian outlets like Ukrainska Pravda or NV (New Voice of Ukraine) you will find limited coverage of war crimes trials.
This issue receives significant attention when major events occur, such as the atrocities uncovered during the independence of Bucha or during the occupation of regions such as Kherson. Outside of such moments, it is not a dominant theme in media coverage.
Jacobsen: Thank you so much for the opportunity and your time, Hannah.
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Scott Douglas Jacobsen A writer-editor for Good Men Project With over 1,800 publications on the platform. He is its founder and publisher In-Site Publishing (ISBN: 978-1-0692343; 978-1-0673505) and its editor-in-chief In-Site: Interview (ISSN: 2369-6885). He writes for International Policy Digest (ISSN: 2332-9416), humanist (Print: ISSN, 0018-7399; Online: ISSN, 2163-3576), Basic Income Earth Network (UK registered charity 1177066), Humanist perspective (ISSN: 1719-6337), A further investigation (substack), vocal, moderate, New lighting project, Washington Outsider, rabble.caand other media. His bibliography can be found through the index Jacobsen Bank In-Site Publishing has more than 10,000 articles, interviews and republications in more than 200 outlets. He has held national and international leadership roles within humanitarian and media organizations, held several academic fellowships, and currently serves on several boards. He is a member in good standing of numerous media organizations including Canadian Journalists Association, Penn Canada (CRA: 88916 2541 RR0001), and Reporters Without Borders (SIREN: 343 684 221/SIRET: 343 684 221 00041/EIN: 20-0708028), and others.
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