Pro-Russian authorities in Donetsk lift moratorium on death sentences

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July 8. () –

Authorities in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, located in eastern Ukraine and recognized by Russia, lifted a moratorium on the death penalty on Friday, paving the way for capital punishment.

The Donetsk People’s Council has given the ‘green light’ to lift this moratorium, as announced by the press service of the National Assembly of the self-proclaimed republic and reported by the Russian news agency Interfax.

This measure comes after the Donetsk authorities sentenced to death two British citizens and a Moroccan imprisoned in the context of the war, a conflict in which they were fighting on the Ukrainian side.

The Donetsk Justice sentenced Aiden Aslin, Sean Pinner and Sadun Brahim to death after considering that they were acting as mercenaries in the war, thus excluding them from the guarantees for prisoners of war.

Pinner and Aslin were arrested in mid-April in Mariupol, while Brahim was killed in an operation by Russian forces on March 12 in Volnovakha.

According to Russian authorities, nearly 7,000 foreigners from more than 60 countries have joined Ukrainian forces to participate in the conflict since it began in late February, more than four months ago.

The verdict of the Donetsk court is not internationally recognized, so if the execution of the two Britons and the Moroccan is carried out, it could be considered a war crime under international law.