Lubinets Asks Italian Ombudsman to Ensure Rights of Nord Stream Suspect on Hunger Strike
The request follows reports that the detainee is refusing food to protest his treatment in a high‑security Italian prison.
Overview
- Ukraine’s human-rights chief Dmytro Lubinets petitioned Italy’s ombudsman Marino Fardelli to verify conditions for Sergiy Kuznetsov and protect his basic rights.
- Representatives of Ukraine’s consulate and the ombudsman’s office plan to visit the facility to assess Kuznetsov’s health and detention conditions.
- Kuznetsov’s lawyer says he has refused food since October 31, citing lack of a medically appropriate diet, poor sanitary conditions, limited family visits, and restricted access to information.
- An Italian court in late October approved Kuznetsov’s extradition to Germany under a European arrest warrant, and the defense says it will appeal to the Cassation Court.
- German prosecutors accuse Kuznetsov of coordinating the 2022 pipeline attack, including an alleged role linked to the yacht Andromeda, while joint probes confirmed sabotage but have not legally established the perpetrators; Lubinets notes a recent Polish acquittal of another Ukrainian as relevant to evidentiary concerns.