WASHINGTON, October 3 (RIA Novosti) – The United States condemns the killing of Red Cross worker Laurent DuPasquier during shelling in the city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, US National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden said in a statement Friday.
"The United States condemns the killing of Laurent DuPasquier, an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) staff member, caused by shelling yesterday near the organization's premises in Donetsk, Ukraine. We extend our sympathies and condolences to Mr. DuPasquier's family, friends, and colleagues," the statement said.
"We urge all parties to the [Ukrainian] conflict to respect international humanitarian law and ensure that its protections are afforded to the ICRC and other humanitarian organizations, which are providing impartial and much-needed aid to civilians in Ukraine," the statement added, also calling on the parties "to protect the civilians in their midst and hold accountable those who engage in the indiscriminate use of force."
Earlier on Friday, Moscow called for an unbiased and thorough investigation into the death of Swiss citizen DuPasquier.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov underlined that the Kiev government and independence supporters in eastern Ukraine must strictly abide by the agreements reached last month in the Belarusian capital Minsk, which stipulated a ceasefire between the two parties.
Ukraine has been engulfed in a violent internal conflict since mid-April, when Kiev began its military operation against independence supporters in the southeastern regions of the country. The conflict has claimed the lives of more than 3,600 people, according to the latest UN estimates. Over 8,400 people have been wounded.
