German Prosecutor General Peter Frank has launched an investigation into Russian war crimes committed on the territory of Ukraine.
This was reported by the publication Spiegel.
According to judicial circles, this is a proceeding that serves to secure extensive testimony and circumstantial evidence in order to be able to take action against individual perpetrators later, if necessary.
The investigation concerns reports of the use of cluster bombs, strikes on residential areas and civil infrastructure, gas pipelines, nuclear waste dumps and thermal power plants.
Investigators will also focus on reports of target lists of Russian and Chechen units stationed in Ukraine. The lists reportedly contain the names of Ukrainian politicians who are planned to be killed. President Volodymyr Zelensky said last week that he is the "number one target" for these units.
In Germany, a federal prosecutor can prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity committed around the world. Earlier, the actions of Karlsruhe investigators led to a historic decision in the case of torture by the Syrian Assad regime.
We recall that on March 7, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) began hearings on Ukraine's lawsuit against Russia over allegations of genocide.
