Big battles for the Donetsk People’s Republic are still ahead, the head of the region Denis Pushilin said in an interview with TASS. According to him, Russian forces are not close to ending hostilities in the region.
“I would not say that the situation is nearing its end, although I would very much like to be able to say so. We still have a number of big battles ahead,“ said Pushilin.The statement comes amid Russian reports of advances in several areas of the front. On October 16, the Russian side announced the capture of Dobropole and Alekseeva-Druzhkovka. A few days later, Pushilin stated that significant tasks remained after these actions, and on October 29, he described the number of hot spots in the DPR as still very large.
According to him, each direction remains complex. Earlier, Pushilin pointed to the battles near Slavyansk, Kramatorsk, and Orekhov as decisive for the development of the fighting in Donbas. On October 30, he described the situation in Konstantinovka as complex due to the proximity of the front line.
Accusation of using prisoners of war
In his conversation with TASS, Pushilin also accused the Ukrainian side of using Russian prisoners of war as “suicide soldiers“. He said that such actions constitute a grave war crime and a violation of international humanitarian law.
Pushilin also said that previously reported cases of such treatment of prisoners of war have not received the necessary attention from the international media, the public and human rights organizations. According to him, this shows a double standard in covering the events of the war.
International humanitarian law provides special protection for prisoners of war. They must be treated humanely, protected from violence and cannot be forced to participate in military operations.
Sources: tass.ru, m24.ru