Key facts
- UN report documented 1,004 verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence in Ukraine between Feb 2022 and July 2026.
- 89% of cases were attributed to Russian forces, including armed forces, prison service, and security agencies.
- 11% of cases were linked to Ukrainian forces, including armed forces.
- Violations included gang rape, rape, genital mutilation, and electric shocks to genitals.
- Most victims in detention were men, particularly prisoners of war and detainees.
- Russia has failed to take steps to prevent, investigate, or prosecute sexual violence by its personnel.
A report by the UN human rights office has detailed widespread sexual violence committed by Russian forces in Ukraine, including gang rape and the use of electric shocks on genitals. The report, released on Friday, documented 1,004 verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence between February 2022 and July 2026.
Of the total cases, 89% were attributed to the Russian side, involving members of the armed forces, prison service, and security agencies. Eleven percent of the violations were linked to Ukrainian forces, including members of the Ukrainian armed forces.
Russia's diplomatic mission in Geneva declined to comment on the report. Ukraine's foreign ministry welcomed the publication, stating it showed the scale of violations by Russia and Ukraine's efforts to prevent such violence and compensate victims, without directly addressing findings of abuse by its own forces.
The report cautioned that the figures likely underestimate the true scale of violations due to significant under-reporting and Russia's refusal to grant the UN access to occupied territories and detainees. Violations documented against Ukrainian prisoners of war and detained civilians in Russian-occupied areas and within Russia included gang rape, rape, genital mutilation, and electric shocks to the genitals.
Most victims in detention were men, particularly prisoners of war and detainees, though women and children were also affected. Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, highlighted that in the Ukraine war context, the majority of survivors are men, requiring different recovery approaches.
The report concluded that Russia had failed to take steps to prevent, investigate, or prosecute sexual violence committed by its personnel. For Russian prisoners of war held in Ukrainian-controlled territory, nearly half of the violations attributed to Ukrainian authorities involved threats of sexual violence and beatings to the genitals, though no cases of rape were documented by Ukrainian forces against Russian POWs. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk expressed deep alarm, fearing the acts are continuing.