Vilnius City District Court has accepted a civil lawsuit against Mikhail Gorbachev, the then Soviet leader. It was brought by six people who lost their family members during the Soviet crackdown on civilians in the Lithuanian capital in January 1991, the 15min news website reported on Monday.
"The lawsuit has been accepted. Today the judge adopted the resolution," it quoted Robertas Povilaitis, one of the six plaintiffs, as saying.
The lawsuit claims that Gorbachev, as commander-in-chief of the Soviet Armed Forces, had control of the army on January 11–13, 1991, but failed to take steps to prevent the crimes committed by the army.
Fourteen civilians were killed and hundreds more were injured when the Soviet troops stormed the TV Tower and the Radio and Television Committee building in Vilnius in the early hours of January 13, 1991.
The Soviet Union used military force in its attempt to topple the government of Lithuania which declared independence on March 11, 1990.
In March 2019, Vilnius Regional Court convicted 67 former Soviet officials and military officers, including former Soviet Defence Minister Dmitry Yazov, of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The majority of them were handed prison sentences in absentia as Russia and Belarus refused to extradite them.
Read more: It’s been 30 years – January 1991 special
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