By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

KIEV, Ukraine – As an international team of investigators continues to look into the cause of the MH17 crash, it appears that the focus has shifted to gathering and protecting witnesses who can support the theory that it was a Buk missile that took down the plane last summer. The Joint Investigative Team (“JIT”) is offering protection to any witnesses who are concerned about coming out for safety reasons.

The JIT is currently “looking for witnesses who have seen Buk crew members or have more information about the identity of those involved in ordering and launching the Buk.” A Dutch report claims that the plane was downed by “high-velocity objects,” which other sources such as the JIT believe came from a Buk missile system. Intelligence appears to show such a system in the area moving prior to the plane going down, and so the investigation is currently focused on finding witnesses who can verify the involvement of this system, or perhaps help find those responsible and fill in some of the missing pieces to this story. It further appears that the Buk launcher crossed into Russia shortly after the plane was downed.

In the meantime, while the second Minsk cease-fire largely holds in Eastern Ukraine, both sides continue to commit minor violations. On Saturday, 22 Russian tanks crossed from the Russian town of Gukovo into Eastern Ukraine via Luhansk and towards Sverdlovsk. The Donetsk regional government also claims that Kiev violated the truce 13 times on Saturday. On Sunday, pro-Russian rebels fired 15 Grad missiles at Horlivka, and they claim to have received the 122mm Grad missiles from one of Russia’s “humanitarian convoys,” which are still arriving.

A survey by Ukrainian agency Interfax, which surveyed over 2,000 citizens in Donetsk and Luhansk, found 45% of residents did not have enough to eat. The United States is also stepping in to help by sending 35 paratroopers from the Army’s 173^rd Airborne Brigade, based in Vicenza, Italy, to train six Ukrainian National Guard companies over a two-month deployment. Britain has also sent 35 military personnel, along with non-lethal equipment, to train Ukrainians in Mykolaiv during a two-month deployment.

Meanwhile, while Russia continues to deny direct involvement in the Ukrainian fight, some Russians, such as Dmitry Sapozhnikov, claim to have left Russia to go to Ukraine to fight. Not only that, but Sapozhnikov claims that “all operations, especially large-scale ones, are led by Russian officers, by Russian generals… we fulfill the orders.” US Lt Gen Ben Hodges reports that nearly 12,000 Russian troops are currently operating inside Ukraine.

For more information, please see:

RT – MH17 probe looking for witnesses to back ‘Buk missile’ scenario – 31 March 2015

BBC – How Ukraine rebels rely on Russians – 31 March 2015

The Telegraph – Separatist fighter admits Russian tanks, troops ‘decisive in eastern Ukraine battles’ – 31 March 2015

Newsweek – U.S. Sending Army Paratroopers to Train Ukraine Forces – 31 March 2015

BBC – MH17 disaster: Appeal for Buk rocket witnesses – 30 March 2015

The Wall Street Journal – Dutch-Led Probe of MH17 Crash Says Buk Missile Launch is Primary Theory – 30 March 2015

Newsweek – Russian Tanks and Fighters Enter Eastern Ukraine, Says Kiev – 30 March 2015

Bloomberg – Ukraine Says Rebel Attacks Ebb as Tanks Said to Cross Border – 29 March 2015

By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

KIEV, Ukraine – While pro-Russian rebels in Eastern Ukraine may have initially been happy when they gained control of some land, they are now facing the struggles that come with disassociating from the parent nation. Economic times are tough in rebel-held territory, and those living in Eastern Ukraine are struggling.

After losing sections of Eastern Ukraine to pro-Russian rebels, Kiev installed some cuts to the banking system and also imposed some travel restrictions. In effect, these moves have caused those already in East Ukraine to become trapped without much aid or assistance from outside, increasing the poverty issue for those in pro-Russian land. The Ukrainian military is claimed to be denying aid to the East, and the pro-Russian rebel’s People’s Republic of Donetsk has handled the need for aid by denying there is a need for it. Either way, both sides are denying aid to those in need.

Some kids living in Eastern Ukraine are also being denied school by their parents due to concerns that it is not safe. Those who remain speak about the damaged homes and loved ones who were killed in the fighting, as well as the many who have already left to move either further West or into Russia. Despite the ceasefire, fighting has yet to completely halt in Eastern Ukraine, as artillery fire reportedly hit rebel-held Donetsk on Sunday. It appears that the shelling originated near the Donetsk airport, and Ukrainian soldiers further report that small arms, 82mm mortar shells, and rocket-propelled grenades were used against government troops near the airport overnight; three people have been injured in the attacks.

Ukrainian soldiers also report small arms fire and 120mm mortar shells were fired upon them in Luhansk and near Mariupol, and further that there were nine incidents where pro-Russian rebel drones were seen in the air. NATO’s joint intelligence unit in the United Kingdom, according to U.S. Air Force General Philip Breedlove, has also confirmed that Russia continues to send military and economic support into Eastern Ukraine for the pro-Russian rebels.

Perhaps pressured by all of this, neighboring NATO countries, particularly in the Baltics, have been very concerned over the past year that they may be next in sight for Russia. In an effort to increase pressure on Moscow and ease concerns of military takeover in other Eastern European nations, the United States is currently engages in “Operation Dragoon Ride,” which involves a parade of Strykers and the US Army’s 2^nd Cavalry Regiment riding throughout Eastern Europe.

For more information, please see:

Sky News (AU) – Artillery rocks Ukraine rebel base Donetsk – 23 March 2015

USA Today – For pro-separatist Ukrainians, hardship replaces hope – 22 March 2015

Bloomberg View – NATO Says Russia’s Still Pouring Arms Into Ukraine – 22 March 2015

RT – US military convoy parades through Eastern Europe – 22 March 2015

By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

KIEV, Ukraine – A fragment found at the crash site of MH17 has been tested and appears to have come from a Russian BUK missile.

A Dutch journalist recovered a fragment from the July 17 crash that killed 298 people. The fragment was later tested by international forensic experts, which included defense analyst HIS Jane’s in London. Tests on the fragment show that it appears to have come from the Russian BUK missile, an anti-aircraft missile that fires from a truck to engage aircraft up to 13 miles off the ground.

Testing on fragments has revealed a low-grade steel alloy consistent with BUK missiles, and a fragment believed to have come from a warhead includes numbers that seem consistent with a serial number and a Russian alphabet letter. IHS Jane reports the warhead came from a BUK-9M317, which is the newer version of a BUK 1-2. German rocket scientists Marksu Schiller and Robert Schmucker also believe the IHS Jane report, claiming “only a Buk missile can take out the aircraft at such a height, in such a short time, and cause so much damage.”

Until this new report came out, reports merely claimed “high velocity projectiles” hit the plane but could confirm no more. Both sides continue to blame the other; Kiev and Western nations believe it was fired either by Russia or more likely pro-Russian rebels armed with a Russian missile, while Russia and pro-Russian rebels tend to claim Kiev is responsible.

Ukraine has been more stable as of late given a cease-fire that has created more peace in the country’s East than has been seen in months. There is one problem, however, as the cease-fire is contingent on both sides pulling away heavy weapons 15 to 45 miles from the front, yet reports show that both sides have failed to do so, and are actively moving heavy weapons near the front. On Wednesday, reports claim Kiev transported a tank and large-caliber gun in Avdiivka, near the front, and reports from Friday claim that two tanks and two 120mm guns were taken to the front in rebel territory near Donetsk. Lack of willingness by both sides to honor the cease-fire terms, along with reports officially linking Russia to the MH17 crash, create concerns that the cease-fire may again fall apart to renewed fighting that has already killed 6,000.

For more information, please see:

Yahoo – Confidence in Ukraine’s cease-fire hurt by arms violations – 21 March 2015

Business Insider – More proof that a Russian BUK missile shot down passenger plane MH17 – 19 March 2015

NL Times – Russian BUK Missile Took Out MH17: Dutch Forensic Researcher – 19 March 2015

Reuters – Fragment from MH17 crash site supports missile theory: Dutch TV – 19 March 2015

By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

PARIS, France – U.N. Human Rights Chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein recently spoke out against not only terrorism, but also against nations who lowered themselves to the level of the terrorists by employing tactics that violate human rights. “The fight against terror is a struggle to uphold the values of democracy and human rights, not undermine them,” Hussein said. He believes nations fighting terrorism are also restricting and violating the rights of people in the name of ‘national security.’

Hussein worries that employing questionable tactics in the fight against terrorism may actually be assisting terrorists. For example, ISIS has already successfully used human rights violations by the US at Guantanamo Bay as a propaganda tool to recruit more members. “Counter-terrorist operations that are non-specific, disproportionate, brutal and inadequately supervised violate the very norms that we seek to defend,” Hussein claimed. Hussein also criticized the US for its use of torture in the name of ‘national security,’ including torture sites throughout Europe.

Hussein was also quick to criticize the terrorists employing brutal tactics to begin with. While world powers may be acting in ways that fuel terrorism, “experiences of humiliation, inequality and discrimination … may drive, though they do not excuse, the urge to destroy.” Many of these violations have occurred over the past year at the hands of ISIS or affiliates of, including at least two terrorist attacks on European targets (Charlie Hebdo in Paris and a Jewish Museum in Brussels).

Also targeted by Hussein was the silencing of opposition to the Kremlin, Boris Nemtsov. First, Nemtsov was killed in Moscow, sparking international demand for an international investigation to ensure Putin is not involved and to bring the right people to jusitce. Since then, detained suspects claimed to be responsible for the killing have been showing signs of torture after being detained, with one, Rustam Yusupov, reportedly missing since detention.

It is precisely the injustices around the world in some leading nations that Hussein believes is fueling terrorism and allowing extreme human rights violations to occur. By eliminating torture, racial insensitivity and inequality, and wrongful silencing of the opposition, Hussein believes leading nations can better preserve human rights while also properly combatting terrorism.

For more information, please see:

Reuters – Suspects in Nemtsov killing probably tortured – Russian rights activist – 11 March 2015

The New York Times – U.N. Rights Chief Criticizes World Powers – 5 March 2015

Mail & Guardian – UN calls on countries to ‘root out’ injustices that fuel extremism – 5 March 2015

UN News Centre – Member States must enforce human rights amid rising tide of extremism – UN rights chief – 5 March 2015

By Kyle Herda

Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe

KIEV, Ukraine – Tensions between Russia and NATO nations remains high despite the ceasefire still holding in Ukraine, and unfortunately this is keeping Ukraine in the spotlight between the two forces. The United States will be sending troops to help train Kiev’s military, much against the demands by Russia to avoid involvement with the United States.

United States’s senior envoy to Europe claims that there are still “thousands and thousands” of Russian troops deployed in Eastern Ukraine, along with “hundreds of pieces of military equipment, including tanks, armored vehicles, rocket systems, heavy artillery.” US Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges estimates that there are 12,000 Russian troops in eastern Ukraine, along with another 29,000 in Crimea. Further, the senior envoy claims that “[t]he Russian military has its own robust command structure in eastern Ukraine … they are funding this war, they are fueling it and commanding and controlling it.”

In response, the United States intends to carry out its plan to send roughly 300 troops to western Ukraine to train Kiev’s troops in fighting the pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine. Further, under the fiscal 2015 budget to help train and equip the armed forces of allies around the world, the US has already set aside $19 million to assist the Ukrainian National Guard. On top of this, the US has still failed to rule out sending lethal aid to Kiev. Additionally, German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that more sanctions may be pressed onto Russia if the ceasefire fails, as it would likely be the result of instability caused at least partially by Russian involvement.

Russia has been active in trying to denounce the involvement of NATO nations in the Ukrainian conflict. Recently, Russian Su-30s and Su-24 aircraft from Russia’s new Black Sea Fleet in Crimea have run mock attacks on NATO warships in the Black Sea.

For more information, please see:

Yahoo – EU ready with sanctions if Ukraine ceasefire violated, Merkel says – 4 March 2015

Yahoo – ‘Thousands’ of Russian troops in east Ukraine: US envoy – 4 March 2015

Business Insider – Report: Russia is practicing attack runs against NATO warships in the Black Sea – 4 March 2015

Defense News – US Soldiers Readying for Ukraine Deployment – 3 March 2015

ABC – US Commander: Arming Ukraine Increases Pressure on Putin – 3 March 2015

Global Research – Despite Russian Warnings, US Will Deploy a Battalion to Ukraine by the End of the Week – 3 March 2015