War

How does the war end in Ukraine? At the moment it is far from obvious – which is why both sides are girding for a trial of strength in Donbas after Russia was forced to abandon its attempt to capture Kyiv. Russia’s current military activity appears to back up what are in effect reduced war aims: targeting the entire Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts claimed by the so-called separatist republics, both recognised by Vladimir Putin just before the war broke out. An eight-mile convoy, spotted on Friday by satellite imagery, 50 miles east of Kharkiv, is likely to be heading for…

The occupants tried to burn the bodies of six dead civilians in Bucha. An investigation has been launched. "The Bucha district prosecutor's office initiated criminal investigation into the violation of the laws and customs of war (Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). During the occupation of the town of Bucha, soldiers of the armed forces of the Russian Federation, in violation of International Humanitarian Law, killed civilians and set their bodies on fire to conceal the crime. In the course of the investigation, it was established that the bodies of the dead had signs of violent death and…

Video taken from a drone on March 3 in Bucha, with the Russian BMD firing several shots at a civilian at the intersection of Yablunska and Vokzalna streets. (The video also tracks the civilian through the point he meets the Russian BMD at the intersection.) Following the release of photos from the city, the Russian Defense Ministry said that Ukraine had staged a provocation, and the bodies appeared on the streets only after the (Russian) de-occupation (and the Ukrainian occupation.). However, the head of the ritual service of the Bucha community, Serhiy Kaplychny, confirms the first burial of civilians in…

(Warsaw) – Human Rights Watch has documented several cases of Russian military forces committing laws-of-war violations against civilians in occupied areas of the Chernihiv, Kharkiv, and Kyiv regions of Ukraine. These include a case of repeated rape; two cases of summary execution, one of six men, the other of one man; and other cases of unlawful violence and threats against civilians between February 27 and March 14, 2022. Soldiers were also implicated in looting civilian property, including food, clothing, and firewood. Those who carried out these abuses are responsible for war crimes. “The cases we documented amount to unspeakable, deliberate cruelty and violence…

Natalya, 33, told how two Russian soldiers came to the family home near Kyiv and shot dead her husband in the front yardSoldiers then came into the house and raped her repeatedly for several hoursNatalya said she could hear her four-year-old crying whilst hiding in boiler room A Ukrainian woman who was gang-raped repeatedly for hours by drunk Russian soldiers whilst her four-year-old son hid crying in a boiler room, just moments after they shot dead her husband, has spoken for the first time of the horror she endured.  Natalya, 33, whose name has been changed, told how a Russian…

Great people of a great country! The 22nd day of our struggle, our defense against one of the world's largest armies is over. Which we make smaller every day. Every day. But it still has numbers, equipment and reserves. We have information that the Russian military is recruiting mercenaries from other countries, trying to deceive as many young people as possible into military service. We know that this will not help them. So now I warn everyone who will try to join the occupiers on our Ukrainian land. This will be the worst decision of your life. Long life is…