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Military operation in Ukraine

Trial hearings of Azov fighters may be open to public, DPR justice minister says

Yury Sirovatko noted that over 100 Azov militants had already been named as defendants in mass murder cases

DONETSK, July 13. /TASS/. Trial hearings of Azov Battalion members may be open to the public, the Donetsk People’s Republic’s (DPR) Justice Minister Yury Sirovatko said.

"The articles that they are charged with mostly concern terrorism and mass murders. I don’t rule out that court hearings against Azov fighters will be open to the public. The court will make a decision on that. As for other defendants, investigative activities are coming to an end, all cases will be sent to court," he told the Donetsk News Agency.

According to Sirovatko, the court is currently hearing appeals filed by foreign mercenaries. "If the court upholds the sentences, they will take effect and will be carried out," the DPR justice minister explained.

He noted that over 100 Azov militants had already been named as defendants in mass murder cases. Investigations are underway into every count. The militants have been moved from facilities accommodating prisoners of war to a pre-trial detention center.

A DPR court earlier found British nationals Shaun Pinner and Aiden Aslin and Moroccan Brahim Saadoun guilty of participating in military activities as mercenaries on the side of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to the DPR Prosecutor General's Office, their testimony confirmed their involvement in crimes as defined by a DPR Criminal Code article on mercenary activities. If their appeals against the verdict are rejected, the mercenaries will be executed, Donetsk leader Denis Pushilin said.

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Military operation in Ukraine

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