[JURIST] Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] on Monday released a report [text, PDF] documenting extra-judicial killings by both pro-Russian separatists and pro-Kyiv forces in eastern Ukraine, though the advocacy group cautions that the actual number of atrocities is not on the scale reported by Russian media. According to the report, it is likely that a number of human rights violations remain undiscovered, though many of the reports on mass graves have been greatly exaggerated. John Dalhuisen, AI Europe and Central Asia Director, advocated for further investigation, stating, “Rather than speculatively accusing each other of abuses, both sides should concentrate on investigating and eliminating execution-style killings by forces they control.” The report calls upon insurgent groups and de facto authorities in the Donetsk and Luhansk Regions to ensure that forces under their control do not subject anyone to enforced disappearances or carry out summary killings and that nobody is subjected to torture or ill-treatment. It also called on the Ukrainian government to undertake prompt investigations into all allegations of killings and to ensure that their arrest and detention practices respect due process.

The crisis in Ukraine [JURIST news archive] has continued to escalate over recent months with no immediate end in sight. Earlier this month a senior UN human rights official said that the death toll in Ukraine has risen above 3,000 and pleaded for peace [JURIST report] to spare more bloodshed. Also this month now-former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay announced the findings of a report [JURIST report] detailing the harsh war-like conditions in eastern Ukraine that have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians. The report noted that civilian deaths are averaging approximately 36 per day, and also documented a number of serious human rights abuses committed primarily by the armed groups who seized control over a large part of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine. Late last month the UN OCHR issued a report [JURIST report] documenting the continuing deterioration of the human rights situation in Ukraine and calling for greater care to prevent civilian causalities in the region. Earlier in July Amnesty International cited [JURIST report] mounting evidence of abductions and violence against activists, protesters and journalists in eastern Ukraine.