World leaders express their horror at the ‘deliberate slaughter’ of civilians in Ukrainian cities. Many want an independent investigation and tougher sanctions. The Russians continue to deny. Meanwhile, the battle in the south continues.
According to Ukrainian researchers, 410 bodies have so far been found in cities around the capital Kiev. It would concern civilians who were murdered by retreating Russian troops. It is mainly the images from the city of Butja, on the northwest side of Kiev, that lead to mass outrage. It shows how the hands of some bodies are tied. Other victims have bags over their heads. There are also images of mass graves with bodies in garbage bags. Dead civilians were also found in Irpin and Hostomel.
Western leaders have reacted with dismay and now want a major independent investigation into what happened. French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, among others, have spoken out in favor of such an investigation. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has emphasized that everything will be documented and that the perpetrators of the atrocities will be punished.
There are also calls for even tougher sanctions against Russia. For example, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Russian President Putin and his supporters will suffer “the consequences” of their actions. German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht has called on the European Union to boycott Russian gas. “There must be an answer,” she told broadcaster ARD. “Crimes like this should not go unpunished.” The EU gets 40 percent of its gas from Russia, Germany even more than half.
‘Provocation’
The Russians continue to deny that they have done anything wrong in Butsha. They call it “a provocation” designed to thwart the peace negotiations. It would be “another manufactured production of the regime in Kiev for the Western media,” according to the Ministry of Defense. Moscow now wants the UN Security Council to meet today to discuss the issue. Russia is one of the permanent members of this council. Ukraine has also requested a special session.
The fighting in other parts of Ukraine, meanwhile, continues. Last night, the southern port city of Odessa is said to have been bombarded with rockets again. Earlier on Sunday, the Russians destroyed an oil depot, leaving large clouds of black smoke over the city. The Russian army said it wanted to hit the fuel supplies of the Ukrainian armed forces.
Mariupol
The battle for the port city of Mariupol has also not abated. That city has been shelled and besieged for weeks by the Russians, who seem to want to conquer it at all costs. Ukraine reports that it evacuated 2,964 people yesterday from the city and the nearby Luhansk region. The Red Cross is also still trying to get people out of there. An aid convoy has already made several attempts. The Ukrainian government said last week that some 75,000 civilians have been removed from Mariupol so far.
For the Russians, the city is needed for a corridor between the Crimean peninsula (annexed by Russia in 2014) and eastern Ukraine, where the separatist people’s republics of Donetsk and Luhansk are located. They are supported by Moscow. Ukraine fears that the Russian army will now do everything in its power to take full control of that area. President Volodimir Zelensky already said on Saturday that he would strengthen his troops in the east. The mayor of northern Chernihiv said his city is now “70 percent destroyed.”
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At the presentation of the Grammys, the American music awards, a pre-recorded speech by President Zelensky was shown last night. “Our musicians wear bulletproof vests instead of tuxedos,” he said. “They sing for the wounded in hospitals, even for those who can’t hear them.” He also called for action again: “Support us in every way you can, just not with your silence.”
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