The Guardian reported that widespread sexual assaults were taking place in areas occupied by Russian forces in Ukraine.
Recently, when Russian troops withdrew from the north including the capital Kiiu to focus on the eastern front of Ukraine, women in the region are reporting sexual assault to local police, media and human rights groups.
Among them, the Guardian reported that there were also cases of victimization, including gang rape, where the Russian military threatened with a gun or sexually assaulted them in front of children.
An organization that supports victims of sexual assault said, "We have had several inquiries from women who ask for help through the emergency line. In most cases, we could not help these people because of the fighting.
"Sexual assault is a crime that is reported less than the reality, and it is a problem that leaves a lot of scars on victims even in peacetime," he said.
Human Rights Watch, a global human rights group, also issued a statement saying that there were reports of cases of war crimes including sexual assault in regions occupied by Russian forces such as Chernivu and Kiiu from the 27th of last month to the 14th of this month.
In a village in the southwest of Vinnica, a Ukrainian as well as a Russian soldier dragged a female teacher to a school library and attempted to sexually assault her, but police arrested her.
Sexual assault in wartime has been treated as a type of war crime since the enactment of the 'Rome Statute on the International Criminal Court' in 1998.
As such, Ukrainian authorities have announced that they will open an investigation into reported cases of sexual assault.