Mariupol doctor testifies in The Hague as justice push advances

A Mariupol hospital chief described the siege’s toll in a June 23 public discussion in The Hague, where organizers framed the city’s experience as evidence for future war-crimes accountability. The testimony adds to efforts to document attacks on civilians as work continues on a special tribunal for Russia’s top leadership.

Why it matters: - The Mariupol case is being used to build evidence for future prosecutions tied to Russia’s war against Ukraine. - Eyewitness accounts from hospital staff help document civilian deaths after occupying forces removed medical records from the city hospital. - The testimony also feeds into the broader push for a Special Tribunal that could target Russia’s top political and military leadership for the crime of aggression.

What happened: - A public discussion called “Mariupol Justice Initiative: Accountability for Ukraine Through the Lens of Mariupol” took place on June 23 in The Hague, Netherlands. - The Mariupol City Military Administration organized the event with support from the Embassy of Ukraine in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. - The Rinat Akhmetov Foundation served as a key partner to the initiative. - Andrii Servetnyk, chief physician of Mariupol City Hospital No. 4, spoke about his experience working in Mariupol during the spring 2022 siege. - Servetnyk’s testimony is preserved in The Museum of Civilian Voices by the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation.

The details: - Servetnyk said Russian forces shelled the city systematically and killed residents, including children, women, men and older people. - By late February 2022, Mariupol City Hospital No. 4 was completely isolated and operating in the middle of a humanitarian catastrophe. - The hospital relied on a single generator that could run only a few hours each day. - Fuel and medicine were scarce. - Medical staff went to damaged gas stations under shelling to look for petrol. - Severe staff shortages forced medical interns to help with surgeries. - When blood and plasma ran out, staff performed direct blood transfusions from medical workers to patients. - Servetnyk described saving a young boy with a severed leg by drawing O-negative blood from an intern and another colleague. - At least 12 to 14 hospital employees were killed during the siege, including Andrii Hnatiuk, Anatolii Kazantsev and Serhii Vlasiuk. - Another 18 medical workers remain missing. - Occupying forces confiscated and removed the hospital’s medical records after capturing Mariupol. - For weeks, bodies from the streets were brought directly to the hospital. - The Museum of Civilian Voices now holds more than 145,000 war-related stories, including about 12,500 from Mariupol residents.

Between the lines: - The Mariupol account underscores how hospitals became both treatment centers and wartime witnesses under siege conditions. - The loss of records made survivor testimony even more important for future trials. - The city’s documented destruction is shaping how international legal experts frame accountability for attacks on civilians. - Vadym Boichenko, head of the Mariupol City Military Administration, said the goal is for the world to hear the full reality of the city’s destruction and recognize Russia’s aggression against Mariupol.

What's next: - Participants said the international community has nearly finished the legal framework for launching a Special Tribunal. - The tribunal would aim to prosecute Russia’s top political and military leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. - Documented witness accounts from Mariupol are expected to remain central to that process. - The Museum of Civilian Voices will likely continue expanding its archive of civilian testimonies.

The bottom line: - Mariupol’s hospital testimony is becoming evidence, not just memory, in the push for wartime accountability.