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The Russians have committed war crimes since the beginning of the invasion in Ukraine. Murders, mass executions, torture, looting and sexual assault of women and children are just some of the heinous activities that the invaders have inflicted upon the Ukrainian civilians.  In this post, we look at how war crimes can be defined according to the international law of armed conflict and look at some evidence of these in Ukraine. WHAT IS A WAR CRIME? A '' code of conduct' ' for defining behaviour in a war zone can be traced back for centuries. However, the current laws of armed conflict and international humanitarian law were created around the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century. Over the years, it has evolved to the Hague Conventions adopted in 1899 and 1907. These focus on the methods of warfare that can be used and what warring parties are allowed and prohibited to do. A few other treaties have been developed since then. A woman and child evacua...

Chechens, and their flashy leader Ramzan Kadyrov, are currently in Ukraine fighting for the Russian side. They have a fierce reputation as ruthless fighters. However, experts say that the Chechens are not actively participating in combat, they are there just for numbers and an enhanced PR campaign.  WHO IS RAMZAN KADYROV? Chechnya has a very long and complicated history with Russia. After fighting in two wars against the mother land, now it is supporting them in the war with Ukraine for the second time in eight years.  Ramzan Kadyrov is the leader of the Chechen Republic. He came to power in 2007, soon after turning 30 years old. That was the minimum age to be able to rule Chechnya. His father, Akhmad Kadyrov, switched sides in the Second Chechen War, to ally with Russia. He became president in 2003, and one year later he was assassinated with a car bomb while attending the Soviet Day Victory Parade in Grozny, the capital of Chechnya. Ramzan Kadyrov and his family (source: Ram...