STATEMENT by Ambassador Gennady Gatilov regarding OHCHR's response to the murder of Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov by Ukrainian special services

Statement by Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Gennady Gatilov

(December 19, 2024)

Yesterday, the official representative of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Elizabeth Throssell, responded to a request from RIA Novosti to comment on the assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov by Ukrainian special services. Her response boiled down to stating that "OHCHR does not have sufficient information to comment on the details of the incident". Moreover, Ms. Throssell believes that the killing of military personnel during conflicts does not fundamentally violate the norms of international humanitarian law.

I can only interpret this as the height of hypocrisy and double standards on the part of this UN human rights body.

It is noteworthy that this response was given to a question regarding whether OHCHR condemns what is clearly an act of terrorism — an explosive device planted at the entrance of an apartment building located hundreds of kilometers away from the active conflict zone. The cynicism of OHCHR no longer surprises. This statement is especially outrageous given that videos of the terrorist act itself and the confession of its direct perpetrator are all over the Internet.

The OHCHR statement is a striking example of deliberate disregard and even cover-up of Ukrainian crimes by UN human rights officials, not to mention their double standards. For comparison: just a few months ago, when terrorist methods were used in Lebanon to detonate pagers and other electronic devices, the High Commissioner himself and OHCHR experts promptly issued condemnations, calling for "a thorough investigation of the incident, identification of those responsible, and holding them accountable". Why are you so quiet now, dear human rights advocates?

In the interest of preserving the already severely tarnished reputation of OHCHR, we strongly demand that its staff strictly adhere to the principles of neutrality and impartiality, and categorically condemn the blatant terrorist methods used by the Kiev regime.