On Saturday 19 August, at around 11.30 a.m., the Russian Federation fired a missile at the centre of Chernihiv. The alleged target of the attack was the premises of the Chernihiv Regional Academic Ukrainian Music and Drama Theatre named after Shevchenko, which was hosting an exhibition of drone manufacturers and aerial reconnaissance training schools as part of the "Furious Birds" demo day.
According to preliminary information from the SBU, the centre of Chernihiv was attacked by a cruise missile from the Iskander surface-to-air missile system (on 27 April 2023, a high-rise building in Mykolaiv was shelled with the same missile). The use of such weapons in the very centre of the city on a weekend and a holiday (the Christian holiday of the Transfiguration of the Lord) against a civilian object, such as a drama theatre, resulted in significant civilian casualties.
As of 22 August, 181 people were injured in the shelling: seven killed and 174 wounded (115 received outpatient care). There are 41 people in the city's hospitals, five in serious condition and the rest in moderate condition. All of the victims are civilians who were not in the theatre and happened to be close to the target of the attack. They are Sofia Golynska (a six-year-old girl), Svetlana Kormiltsina, Natalia Toriya, Nazar Yushchenko, Vladimir Vasilenko, Dmitry Maglych and Alexander Onishchenko. More than 500 houses were damaged. The blast wave damaged three kindergartens, a school, the city council building, the information centre, the department of citizens' appeals, etc. The debris damaged private cars, public transport and part of the trolleybus network.
However, there could have been even more casualties: thousands of citizens are resting with their families near the site of the missile hit, and 50-70 metres from the Drama Theatre is the Friday Church, where, according to the church rector, there were about a thousand worshippers a few minutes before the strike.
The laws and customs of war stipulate that the enemy must distinguish between military objectives and civilian objects. They are also obliged to verify the proportionality of the reduction of the enemy's military capabilities and the damage to civilians and protected civilian objects that such an attack could cause.
The available information on the shelling and the context in which it was carried out is insufficient to provide a definitive legal qualification under international humanitarian law. However, it is indicative for analysing whether the Russian side adhered to the principles of IHL. The location of the drama theatre in the central part of the city; its significance as a cultural heritage site; the day and place of the attack, which caused a significant gathering of civilians around; the nature of the event and the composition of its participants; the type of weapon used and the characteristics of the attack itself; the victims and destruction caused by the attack, etc.
A preliminary assessment of these factors may indicate signs of a serious violation of international humanitarian law and may constitute a war crime and/or a crime against humanity. However, only a full and comprehensive investigation can provide a definitive answer.
The Coalition "Ukraine. Five in the Morning Coalition calls on the Ukrainian authorities to
- to conduct an effective and comprehensive investigation into the shelling of the Chernihiv Regional Academic Ukrainian Music and Drama Theatre named after Shevchenko on 19 August 2023 to establish the circumstances of the incident and those responsible in accordance with international standards and norms of international humanitarian law;
- ensure security protocols for holding mass events in the context of armed conflict, in accordance with the obligation of passive precaution - to make efforts to protect civilians and objects under its authority from the consequences of a potential attack;
- create an appropriate legislative framework that will allow for the correct qualification of events, including the shelling of the Chernihiv drama theatre, make the investigation more effective and enable all perpetrators to be brought to justice. In particular, amend the Criminal Code to define crimes against humanity and command responsibility, as well as the Criminal Procedure Code to set time limits for investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
23.08.2023
