Kiev is routinely using schools and hospitals as military bases, the rights group says Ukrainian forces appear to have a pattern of placing troops and military vehicles in residential areas, including using hospitals as de facto military bases, Amnesty said on Thursday. Such actions violate international humanitarian law and put civilian lives at risk, the human rights NGO said. The accusation is based on research that Amnesty conducted between April and July in the east of Ukraine. In 19 towns and villages, it found evidence that Ukrainian forces launched strikes from within residential areas. In several cases they were targeted by retaliatory Russian attacks, some of which killed civilians, the report said. In 22 out of the 29 schools visited by Amnesty they said they found evidence of current or prior military activity. In five locations they witnessed Ukrainian troops using hospitals as bases, which was “a clear violation of international humanitarian law.” Most resi