A Finnish court sentenced Russian national Yan Petrovsky to life imprisonment for war crimes in eastern Ukraine in 2014. The ruling found his paramilitary unit responsible for the killing of an injured soldier and other offences. Petrovsky denied the charges and intends to appeal.
A Finnish court sentenced a Russian man to life imprisonment on Friday for war crimes committed in 2014 in eastern Ukraine, where his paramilitary unit was found to have been involved in the killing of an injured soldier.
The trial of Yan Petrovsky, also known as Voislav Torden, was a rare instance of foreign prosecutors addressing war crimes linked to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which Moscow supported before the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Born in 1987, Petrovsky was convicted on four out of five charges related to his activities in Ukraine's Luhansk province, part of the Donbass industrial region.
The court identified him as a member of Rusich, a paramilitary unit linked to the Russian Wagner group. He has been under European Union and U.S. sanctions since 2022.
He was found guilty on four counts, including the actions of his unit that led to the death of a wounded Ukrainian soldier, the mutilation of another, and the taking and publishing of degrading images of deceased soldiers.
"A fixed-term prison sentence was not an adequate punishment," the court stated in its verdict.
Petrovsky was detained in Finland at Ukraine’s request in 2023 while attempting to travel to France using a false identity. Finland’s supreme court later blocked his extradition to Ukraine.
One charge was dismissed, with the court ruling that there was insufficient evidence to prove that Petrovsky’s Rusich unit had organised and carried out an ambush while posing as Ukrainian forces, which resulted in the deaths of 22 Ukrainian soldiers. However, it determined that Rusich fighters had been present.
Petrovsky denied all charges and intends to appeal, his lawyer confirmed.
German voters cast ballots on Sunday in two state elections that could add to the political pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as his governmen...
Iraq has returned restricted airspace across the western part of the country to civilian authorities, ending limits imposed for military operations...
Denmark and Greenland have moved to reassure the public that their sovereignty will remain intact under a new security agreement with the United St...
Saudi civil defence sent an all-clear on Saturday after issuing alerts for a second time for potential danger in Riyadh and the city of Al-Kharj east of the capital, amid an uptick in attacks by Iran-aligned Houthis on the Gulf country.
Houthi attacks target Riyadh amid concerns over Saudi oil supplies, as Iran says it will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until its conditions are met and U.S. commitments are implemented, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday.
The U.S. State Department approved a $2.7 billion military sale to Ukraine for air-defence development upgrades, along with related equipment and services, the department said. Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities reported at least 10 people had died in Russian attacks over the last 24 hours.
The death toll from an overnight Russian attack on the Kyiv region rose to four, including three children, Kyiv regional authorities said on Sunday. A mother and her two 3-year-old children were killed when a Russian drone strike hit a private home, the emergency service said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that additional news organisations could be barred from the White House, hours after announcing bans on CNN, MS NOW and Politico over coverage he described as “fake news”.
German voters cast ballots on Sunday in two state elections that could add to the political pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as his government faces growing public frustration and a resurgent far right.
Iraq has returned restricted airspace across the western part of the country to civilian authorities, ending limits imposed for military operations against Islamic State since 2016, the Transport Ministry said.
Denmark and Greenland have moved to reassure the public that their sovereignty will remain intact under a new security agreement with the United States.
World leaders are set to gather at the United Nations General Assembly in New York for several days of high-level debate, with Iran, Ukraine, artificial intelligence (AI) and a range of global crises expected to dominate discussions this week.
Ed Sheeran has broken his silence on the controversy surrounding his U.S. tour, apologising for decisions made after rapper Macklemore was removed from the line-up over his public support for Palestine.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment