On December, the 10th, in New York City at the Ukrainian Institute of America, United Help Ukraine was honored to support and sponsor “Stories from Democracy’s Front Line”, hosted by The Kyiv Independent. We stood alongside journalists who risk everything to ensure the truth is seen, heard, and cannot be ignored.
The evening highlighted the work of the War Crimes Investigation Unit, a team dedicated to documenting Russia’s atrocities, speaking with survivors, and sharing the human stories that rarely make it into print. Each documentary takes months of investigation, filming, and production, demanding immense skill and resources to ensure the world bears witness.
We are proud to help make this vital work possible, as a part of our Raising Awareness program, and to stand with those who fight for truth, justice, and accountability.
The War Crimes Investigation Unit at the Kyiv Independent dedicates itself entirely to uncovering the truth behind the staggering number of atrocities committed by Russian forces in Ukraine—allegedly over 80,000 war crimes since the full-scale invasion began.
Led by Ukraine’s top investigative journalists, the unit does more than just report; it creates powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations that give faces to the massive scale of suffering.
The Focus is Uncovering and Documenting Atrocity. The War Crimes Investigation Unit centers on revealing the specific horrors of the brutal invasion, providing evidence for law enforcement, helping victims seek justice, and ensuring the world understands the truth. Their compelling investigations delve into topics such as:
• Targeting Civilians: Documenting the deliberate killing of Ukrainian children (Bullet Holes).
• Abduction and Abuse: Investigating Russia’s systemic abduction of Ukrainian children (Uprooted) and the torture inflicted upon prisoners of war (Faces of Torture).
• The Crime of Crimes: Exploring the evidence to determine if Russia is committing genocide in Ukraine (Destroy, in Whole or in Part).
• Systematic Weapons of War: Investigating the use of sexual violence as a weapon (He Came Back).
• Cultural and Environmental Destruction: Uncovering the largest museum heist in Europe since WWII (Curated Theft), the consequences of the Kakhovka dam explosion (When the Water Screams), and the systemic terror against Ukrainian churches (No God But Theirs).
The War Crimes Investigation Unit writes about the personal stories and chilling details of injustice—shining a light into the darkest corners of the occupation to secure justice and accountability.
The war crimes In Ukraine included but not limited systematic crimes like abduction of children, torture of POWs, sexual violence, and genocide, in order to help victims seek justice and provide evidence for accountability.
During the Russo-Ukrainian War, Russia has kidnapped almost 20,000 Ukrainian children from occupied territories, assigned them Russian citizenship, forcibly adopted them into Russian families, and created obstacles for their reunification with their parents and homeland.
At least 13,300 Ukrainian military personnel were captured according to the OSCE report. An estimated 6,300 Ukrainian Prisoners of War (POWs) remain in Russian custody, while nearly 6,800 POWs have been released and repatriated since February 2022 and as of September 2025. Tens of thousands of civilians were also captured in occupied territories.
