AL JAZEERA:-
More than 40 countries have agreed to work together to investigate suspected war crimes by Russian forces in Ukraine as the latest shelling of a civilian area killed at least 20 people in the city of Vinnytsia in central Ukraine.
The pledge to coordinate international efforts to bring Russia’s military forces to justice came on Thursday when 45 nations signed a political declaration during a conference at the headquarters of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
The signatories included European Union states as well as Britain, the United States, Canada, Mexico and Australia. The group promised to provide 20 million euros ($20m) to assist the ICC and to support the prosecutor general’s office in Ukraine and efforts by the United Nations to investigate war crimes.
Speaking to reporters after the conference, Ukraine’s Prosecutor General, Iryna Venediktova, held up a photograph that appeared to show a child’s body as she discussed Thursday’s air attack on Vinnytsia.
“Today, 20 people killed by Russian missiles, including three children, 52 injured by Russian missiles, including children. And this information we have every day from morning to night, night to morning,” she said.
With some 23,000 war crimes being investigated and different countries heading investigative teams in Ukraine, evidence needs to be credible and organised, officials said.
