MOSCOW, September 17. /TASS/. Ukraine presents deceased militants of the neo·Nazi organization Azov (recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia) as civilians who allegedly became "victims of Russia" in Bucha, Maxim Grigoriyev, chairman of the International Public Tribunal on the Crimes of Ukrainian Neo·Nazis, said at a press conference at TASS.
"There are many examples. And they allow us to give a clear answer to the question of whether the Ukrainian authorities are trying to pass off Nazis from the Azov unit as civilians killed in Bucha. We can answer this question absolutely convincingly and unequivocally – yes. By falsifying the events in Bucha, the Ukrainian regime is presenting Nazis – military personnel from the Azov unit – as peaceful citizens in Bucha," Grigoriyev said.
He noted that the memorial plaques in Bucha list the names of the people who were not residents of the city and were members of the Azov unit. Grigoriyev added that there are dozens of such "peaceful residents," who also took part in punitive operations in Donbass. According to him, these pseudo·peaceful citizens include snipers, machine·gunners, a military pilot, a security service colonel, a commander of an assault brigade, regular military personnel, and members of the territorial defense.
"A distinctive feature of Ukrainian falsifications and propaganda, which has made our work easier, is that Ukrainian media simultaneously write about specific people as peaceful citizens innocently killed by Russian troops, and in other publications they talk about the same people – but as having died heroically in battle with Russian military," Grigoriyev said.
Grigoriyev said that Article 51 "Protection of the Civilian Population" of the Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions dated 12 August 1949, concerning the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts dated 8 June 1977 states: "Civilians shall enjoy the protection provided for in this Section, except in cases and to the extent that they take a direct part in hostilities." Grigoriyev noted that official Ukrainian materials and media reports contain a significant number of examples where a certain person is presented as a civilian resident of Bucha, yet a detailed description is provided of how they took part in combat operations.
Regarding such cases, the explanations on the International Committee of the Red Cross’s resources clearly state: "In general, the immunity granted to civilians is subject to a very strict condition: they must not take direct part in military operations, that is, they must not become combatants, on pain of losing their protection." Thus, "direct" participation means military actions that, by their nature or purpose, are capable of causing actual harm to the personnel and equipment of the enemy’s armed forces. Only for the duration of such participation does a civilian lose their immunity and become a legitimate target," Grigoriyev said.