Ukraine’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets urged the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to assist in returning the bodies of two teenagers reportedly tortured and killed by Russian forces in occupied Berdiansk last summer. 

This comes after the families of the killed boys, Tihran Ohannisian and Mykyta Khanhanov, complained that Russian occupiers were planning a secret burial of their bodies, without giving any details of when and where to their relatives.

Dmytro Lubinets made the appeal in a social media post, citing international humanitarian law and Geneva Conventions that obligate parties in a war to facilitate the return of remains when requested by relatives or opposing parties. 

Lubinets emphasized the ICRC’s unique position as the only international organization with access to Ukraine’s occupied territories, stating it bears responsibility for body repatriation and resolving such situations. 

“Russia’s impunity and the inaction of responsible international organizations led to the fact that the occupiers not only did not release the boys from the occupation but also, contrary to all norms, killed them! And now they are not allowed to bury them with dignity,” Lubinets wrote.

What happened to teenagers?

In 2023, Russian occupiers in Berdiansk reportedly killed two Ukrainian teenagers from Berdiansk, Tihran Ohannisian and Mykyta Khanhanov, accusing them of being partisans. 

Tihran, previously tortured to confess to damaging a railway, recorded and posted a final video before his death, saying, “…Two for sure. That’s it. It’s death, guys. Goodbye. Glory to Ukraine.” 

The occupation authorities claim the boys attacked soldiers, but human rights defenders doubt this narrative, suspecting it might be a setup.

The boys’ families have not seen their bodies after the incident, and later, they revealed that Russian occupiers are planning their secret burial.

Human rights organizations suspect extrajudicial execution, and the European Parliament has condemned the actions of the Russian forces involved.

Related:

• Russian occupiers kill two Ukrainian teens accused of being partisans in occupied Berdiansk
• Russian occupiers in Berdiansk plan secret burial of murdered Ukrainian teenagers 
• Ukraine’s teenagers on occupied territories tear down Russian flags and put Ukrainian — Center of the National Resistance
• Ukrainian Maria Sulyalina receives human rights award in Sweden for documenting war crimes against children in occupied territories