Characteristics of War Crimes Against the Civilian Population in the Context of Armed Aggression of the Russian Federation
Abstract
Abstract. The article presents a comprehensive study of the legal nature and forensic features of war crimes against the civilian population in the context of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. International legal and national approaches to the definition of war crimes, their features and composition are analyzed. The systemic nature of such crimes, their multi-level nature and connection with the state policy of the aggressor are substantiated. War crimes are considered as a multidimensional category that combines elements of international, criminal, criminal procedural law and forensics. Taking into account the conducted research, the definition of war crimes against the civilian population as socially dangerous, criminally punishable acts committed in connection with an armed conflict, consisting in a violation of the norms of international humanitarian law, directed against persons not participating in hostilities, characterized by a systemic or individual nature, increased public danger and the possibility of universal criminal prosecution is proposed. The legal nature of war crimes in Ukraine is characterized by going beyond the boundaries of traditional domestic regulation. It acquires a transnational nature, which is manifested in the interaction of international and national legal mechanisms, as well as in the possibility of bringing guilty persons to justice both within national jurisdiction and in international judicial institutions. The mechanism of committing war crimes against the civilian population is revealed, which is characterized not only by the multiplicity of forms of their manifestation, but also by the complex systemic interaction of individual elements of criminal activity. Criminal acts are committed in conditions of armed conflict, where various methods of influence are combined - armed, repressive, infrastructural, combined. The content of the article reveals their content. War crimes are considered as a system of interconnected actions implemented within the framework of an armed conflict and aimed at achieving military-political goals. A provision is developed on the systemic nature of war crimes, which manifests itself at the tactical, operational and strategic levels, which allows us to consider them as an element of the implementation of state policy and an instrument of warfare of the Russian Federation.
Keywords: war crimes; civilian population; international humanitarian law; aggression; criminal liability; evidence; forensic signs; mechanism of a criminal offense; investigation; criminal proceedings.
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