In the south of Ukraine, the Russian military is destroying a unique protected area – the regional landscape park “Kinbur Spit”. This was stated by the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova at her telegram channel.
“Forests have been burning in the Kherson region since mid-April. It is difficult to extinguish fires due to the temporary occupation of the region by the Russian military. The fire on the Kinburn Spit lasts more than a week. . According to her, the entire flora, including Europe’s largest field of wild Red Book orchids (its area reaches more than 60 hectares), perennial trees, pink lakes, and animals, is under the threat of destruction.
“Currently, people who need help remain on the territory of the spit, but the exit to the mainland is controlled by the Russian military, who do not allow forest guards to go to sources of ignition. In addition, there is not enough fuel for fire trucks to extinguish the fire, there is no equipment and almost no delivery of products for local residents,” Denisova informed.
The Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights believes that the situation in the unique protected area is approaching catastrophic. She noted that the consequences of forest fires are very dangerous for people’s lives and extremely destructive for the environment, because the fire destroys entire ecosystems of Ukrainian forests, which will then be difficult to restore.
As noted by the Ombudswoman, the actions of the invaders are a violation of the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and additional protocols to them (in particular, Protocol No. 1 of 1977). Denisova appealed to the UN Commission to Investigate Human Rights Violations during the Russian military invasion of Ukraine to take into account these facts of human rights violations of the Russian Federation in Ukraine.