The Ibero-American Council of the Ibero-American Commission on Human Rights for the Development of the Americas (CIDHPDA), in the voice of its Commissioner President Víctor Hugo Gutiérrez Yáñez, demanded the Russian Government not to attack Ukraine and to generate a ceasefire, and therefore requested the international community to intervene so that Russia stops the use of phosphorus bombs, which are harmful to the environment and generate third-degree burns to the human body. Such attacks are prohibited by international law, so it is necessary to take these actions to the International Criminal Court.
Since last year, Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of using phosphorus bombs in the fighting. In May 2023, in the battle of Bakhmut and in the area of the Zaporiyia front Russian forces had used this lethal ammunition. The white phosphorus contained in this weaponry is a wax-like incendiary substance which, when in contact with the skin, can cause burns of up to 800 degrees.
In the recent attacks on Avdiivka, the Third Separate Assault Brigade, in charge of stopping the Russian offensive, denounced on Friday, February 16, that Russia was attacking with phosphorus bombs the coke plant in the locality, where this Ukrainian elite brigade had been installed.
Russian attacks on the locality of Avdiivka have gradually intensified in these months, until, after 20 air strikes and more than 150 artillery attacks by Moscow forces in the last 24 hours, the Ukrainian army was forced to withdraw from this town. During the battle some Ukrainian soldiers were captured, the commander of the southern Ukrainian forces, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, reported in a Telegram message yesterday.
The United Nations Security Council must not be oblivious to these regrettable events and stop these actions perpetrated by the Russian government, as they will generate irreparable damage to humanity. The obligation of the Security Council is to uphold the Charter of the United Nations, the responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. It is incumbent upon the Security Council to determine when and where a UN peacekeeping operation should be deployed. In the ICHRDPA, let us demand the cessation of military attacks against Ukraine.