After the withdrawal of Russian troops from the area around the Ukrainian capital Kiev, the scene is horrifying. Numerous bodies were discovered in the northwestern suburb of Bucha in northwestern Kiev, which has been the subject of fierce fighting for weeks. Dozens of people were killed in the streets, Ukrainian sources said. The discoveries sparked international outrage. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter that she was “shocked” by the “unspeakable horror in areas from which Russia is withdrawing”.
She asked for an independent investigation. At the same time, she assured, “War criminals will be held accountable.” Earlier, EU Council President Charles Michel had stated that the EU would help “gather the necessary evidence for prosecution in international courts”. Dozens of bodies in civilian clothes were reported to have been lying on the street after the Russians left. At least one of the dead had his hands tied.
“All these people were shot,” Mayor Anatoly Fedoruk said. “They killed her with a shot in the back of the head.” There were cars on the street in which “whole families were murdered: children, women, grandmothers, men”. According to the mayor, 280 people in Bucha had to be buried in mass graves because the three city cemeteries were still within reach of the Russian army.
looting and executions
According to the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), a number of “clear war crimes” committed by Russian forces have been documented – in addition to Kiev, they have also been committed in the Chernihiv regions in the north and in Kharkov in the east of the country. HRW reported rapes, looting and executions. Initially, no comment was received from the Russian Presidential Office or the Ministry of Defense on the reports about the bodies found in Bucha.
The Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reacted shocked on Twitter. It also promised an investigation into all crimes committed by the UN Commission of Inquiry. Those responsible for the crimes would be held accountable.
“Cemetery of Russian Hope”
The British broadcaster BBC reported in a film from Bucha that residents had been begged for help by young Russian conscripts who fled. “This is a graveyard of Russian hopes to take Kiev,” a BBC reporter said over images of charred tanks and other military vehicles. He let a resident named Maria speak: “For the first time in 38 days we have bread again.”
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) has announced tougher sanctions against Moscow and further aid to the Ukrainian army. The pictures of the “unbridled violence” from the town of Bucha near the Ukrainian capital Kiev after the withdrawal of Russian troops were “unbearable,” Baerbock wrote on Twitter on Sunday. “Those responsible for these war crimes must be held accountable.”
“Photos deeply shock us”
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier accused Russia of serious war crimes. “The war crimes committed by Russia are visible in the eyes of the world,” Steinmeier said in Berlin on Sunday. “Butscha’s photos shake me, they shake us deeply.”
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
