Death Penalty News

LONDON -The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) said on Thursday it had issued an order to Russia to ensure that two Britons captured after fighting for Ukraine do not face the death penalty. Earlier this month, a court in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) in eastern Ukraine sentenced British citizens Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner to death, accusing them of “mercenary activities”. The ECHR said it had issued an order for interim measures, telling Russia it “should ensure that the death penalty imposed on the applicants was not carried out; ensure appropriate conditions of their detention; and provide them with any necessary medical assistance and medication”. Russia, whose parliament passed legislation this month to remove it from the jurisdiction of Europe’s top human rights court, said it was not bound by the order. “Russia no longer complies with the prescriptions of the EHCR, that’s all there is to say,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. He said “the fate of ...

Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine where 2 Britons and a Moroccan have been sentenced to death say the death penalty will start being used from 2025, according to an updated criminal code of the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). The DPR has had the death penalty on its statute books since 2014, but no legislation outlining how to enforce it until now. Rights group Amnesty International, which tracks the use of the death penalty worldwide, has not recorded any instances of official executions in the region. A court in the DPR in June sentenced two Britons - Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner - and Moroccan Brahim Saadoun to death for "mercenary activities" after they were captured fighting with Ukrainian forces. Their lawyers say they will appeal the decision, which was handed down after a hasty non-jury trial with no access for independent or international media. It was unclear what the new rules - outlined in an updated version of the DPR's criminal exe...

The plight of the Moroccan man who has been sentenced to death in Ukraine has been largely ignored, his sister says. Brahim Saaudun, 21, and two Britons were captured fighting with the Ukrainian army and tried as mercenaries by a Russian proxy court. The British and Ukrainian governments have condemned the trial but Morocco is yet to comment. Iman Saaudun told the BBC he had been "left aside" as attention focused on the other men. "At first, when they captured all of them, then it was like different news about every person," she told the BBC. "There wasn't much attention on my brother... Maybe it's because of my government, they are not doing much about it, they are literally silent." The BBC has contacted the Moroccan government for a response. Like many countries in Africa and the Middle East, Morocco has avoided taking sides in the conflict in Ukraine, calling instead for a peaceful resolution to the war which started with Russia's invasion ...

The UN human rights office, OHCHR, on Friday condemned the death sentence handed down to three foreign fighters in Ukraine by a court in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. “Such trials against prisoners of war amount to a war crime,” said OHCHR spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani. The three men - Britons Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner, and Moroccan Saaudun Brahim – were captured while fighting for Ukraine , reportedly defending the southern port city of Mariupol. Bitter fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces since the Russian invasion on 24 February flattened the city, where UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet has previously condemned attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, that have likely caused thousands of deaths. “OHCHR is concerned about the so-called Supreme Court of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic sentencing three servicemen to death,” said Ms. Shamdasani. “According to the chief command of Ukraine, all the men were part of the Ukrainian a...

Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner were captured while fighting in Ukrainian army Two British men and a Moroccan national captured while fighting in the Ukrainian army in Mariupol have been sentenced to death by pro-Russia officials after a days-long process described as a “disgusting Soviet-era show trial”. A court in Russian-controlled east Ukraine convicted 28-year-old Aiden Aslin, from Newark, 48-year-old Shaun Pinner, from Watford, and Saaudun Brahim on charges of “terrorism”. Observers said the process was intended to imitate the war crimes trials of Russian soldiers taking place in Kyiv. Both Britons have said they were serving in the Ukrainian marines, making them active-duty soldiers who should be protected by the Geneva conventions on prisoners of war. However, Russian state media has portrayed them as mercenaries, and the court has convicted them on the charge of “being a mercenary”. The ruling was swiftly condemned by top British officials. “I utterly condemn the sentencing of Ai...