THE HUMAN FACE OF UNLAWFUL DEPRIVATION OF LIBERTY Review of the Documentation of War Crimes of the Russian Federation against Civilians in 2025

This report examines the systematic unlawful deprivation of liberty of civilians in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in 2025 and their subsequent transfer to the Russian Federation. Based on 219 interviews conducted by the Association of Relatives of Political Prisoners of the Kremlin, the report documents patterns of arbitrary detention, incommunicado detention, torture, ill-treatment, forced transfers, and unfair trials.

It shows how civilians are moved through a network of unofficial detention sites, transit points, pre-trial detention centres and penal institutions, while Russian judicial and penitentiary systems are used to formalise and conceal unlawful persecution. The findings indicate serious violations of international humanitarian and criminal law, which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

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November 30, 2024

Analytical review of the activities of the NGO “Association of Relatives of Political Prisoners of the Kremlin” on documenting Russian war crimes against civilians in Ukraine in November 2024

Since 2022, we have interviewed 402 witnesses of enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions and crimes against civilians, including shelling of civilian infrastructure, appropriation of private property by the occupiers, and illegal deprivation of liberty. As of the end of November 2024, information on 254 civilians who were arbitrarily detained by representatives of the Russian Federation or groups controlled by the aggressor country was found, of which 16 were identified during the processing of testimonies in November 2024.

June 18, 2025

Analytical review of the activities of the NGO “ Association of Relatives of Political Prisoners of the Kremlin ” regarding the documentation of war crimes committed by the Russian Federation against the civilian population in Ukraine in May 2025

Since 2022, the Association's documenters have identified and interviewed 509 witnesses of enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and other international crimes against the civilian population, including shelling of civilian infrastructure, appropriation of private property by the occupiers, and unlawful deprivation of liberty. As of May 31, 2025, information has been established and documented on 355 civilians who were illegally deprived of their personal liberty as a result of the Russian Federation's aggression, 20 of whom were identified during the documentation of testimonies in April 2025.