Pro-Russia DPR head says 'no reason' to pardon foreign mercenaries sentenced to death

At a time the Russia-Ukraine war shows no signs of stopping even after over 100 days of warfare, the leader of the pro-Russian Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) said that he will not pardon foreign mercenaries sentenced to death. Denis Pushilin, the head of the DPR said that he sees "no reason, no prerequisites" to pardon foreign mercenaries who have been sentenced to death by the court, TASS reported. The statement of the DPR head comes after foreign mercenaries from the United Kingdom and Morocco were sentenced to death on Thursday, 9 June. 

The Supreme Court of the DPR sentenced to death two British nationals, Shaun Pinner and Aiden Aslin, as well as Moroccan Saadoun Brahim for being involved in hostilities on the side of the Ukrainian armed forces. The foreign mercenaries from the United Kingdom and Morocco pleaded guilty to all charges. The DPR Supreme Court started considering the cases of two British nationals and one Moroccan citizen on June 6.

Meanwhile, the court said that three men have the right to appeal the court's decision within one month. The Defence lawyer has revealed that they plan to appeal to try the convicts and would seek the alteration of death sentence to 25 years in prison, Sputnik reported. The DPR Prosecutor General's Office in the earlier statement had said that the Piner, Aslin and Saadoun testified on their involvement in crimes like "forcible seizure of power and mercenary activities." 

Britain condemns Aiden Aslin & Shaun Pinner's death sentence

The United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Liz Truss condemned the death sentence of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner. Taking to her official Twitter handle, she called the verdict against the two British nationals a "sham judgement" with "absolutely no legitimacy." Further, Truss assured that the UK government was making every possible effort to support the British nationals sentenced by the DPR court.

In a tweet, Truss wrote, "I utterly condemn the sentencing of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner held by Russian proxies in eastern Ukraine. They are prisoners of war. This is a sham judgment with absolutely no legitimacy."

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, too, condemned the "sham trial" against the prisoners of war. He stressed that they need to be protected according to international humanitarian law and added that they "must be treated accordingly." 

(Image: AP)