By: Emily Chu

Atrocities carried out by the Russian government have spurred outrage from the public. After Russian forces took hold of parts of¬ Ukraine, a series of abuses were reported and documented. The Human Rights Watch said this weekend that these abuses could become war crimes.

These abuses have already made headlines. Most of these included poor treatment of civilians in Ukraine.

“Russian forces have turned occupied areas of southern Ukraine into an abyss of fear and wild lawlessness,” said Yulia Gorbunova, a researcher at Human Rights Watch.

The Russian government has openly denied its inhumane treatment of civilians, and maintains that all has been targeted to Ukraine’s military bases, not civilian areas.

However, Gorbunova says otherwise. “Torture, inhumane treatment, as well as arbitrary detention and unlawful confinement of civilians, are among the apparent war crimes we have documented.”

Many people interviewed by the Human Rights Watch reported that the Russian government has detained people for unknown reasons.

“People interviewed described being tortured, or witnessing torture, through prolonged beatings and in some cases electric shocks,” said a report by Human Rights Watch.

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