Lawyers for the detained combat commanders addressed the National Security Committee of the Verkhovna Rada, according to a member of parliament.

The Parliamentary Committee on National Security heard from the lawyers of the detained combat commanders, as reported by committee member Iryna Friz (European Solidarity faction) in a comment to the agency “Interfax-Ukraine” on Monday.

“Today, during a closed meeting, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence listened to the reports from the defense of Artur Horbenko, Yuriy Halushkin, and Dmytro Ryumshin, and discussed issues that allow for obtaining diverse information regarding these court proceedings,” Friz explained.

According to the deputy, following the discussion, the committee will send additional inquiries to law enforcement agencies.

The committee members also discussed the need to amend the Criminal Code regarding the concept of “combat immunity” to broaden its application within the legal framework.

Friz also considers the lawyers’ proposal for establishing a temporary investigative commission of the Verkhovna Rada to address issues related to holding military personnel criminally liable under martial law to be appropriate.

The MP also reported that military ombudswoman Olha Reshetylova, who was invited, did not attend the committee meeting.

In response to questions about her absence, the ombudswoman noted that she "left for a long-planned business trip on Sunday, which she had informed the committee chair about in advance. Moreover, the phrasing 'did not appear' is somewhat inappropriate in this context – rather, she did not attend.”

As previously reported, on January 20, the State Bureau of Investigations (DBR) announced the detention of two generals and a colonel, allegedly due to their negligence that allowed the enemy to seize part of the Kharkiv region in 2024.

On January 24, Halushkin stated that regardless of how and when the investigations and trial conclude, he is ready to fight for Ukraine in the capacity of an ordinary soldier and emphasized that the current court proceedings could impact the determination and actions of the commanders.

Meanwhile, the DBR explained why they opened proceedings against the generals and brigade commanders. In particular, they noted that this occurred because the repeated breakthrough by the Russians in Kharkiv caused “significant public resonance.”