A mass grave with approximately 440 bodies was discovered in the Ukrainian city of Izium in the Kharkiv region after Russian forces were driven out. The police chief said some of those killed were shot and others died in bombings. All bodies will be examined to gather evidence of alleged war crimes.
President Zelensky, who went to Izium two days ago, compared the city to Bucha and Mariupol, which have become symbols of atrocities committed by the Russians. He demanded that Russia be held accountable. Journalists from all over the world are expected at Izium to show what atrocities the Russians have committed.
Sergei Bolvinov, the chief police investigator for the Kharkiv region, told Sky News that some people were killed by shelling and airstrikes. Bolvinov said that forensic investigations will be carried out on each individual. “I can say it’s one of the biggest mass graves in a big city in the liberated [areas]… 440 bodies were buried in one place,” he said.
“Common graves are discovered in Izium after liberation from (the Russians). It is the largest mass grave found so far, with 440 unmarked graves,” the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense said on Twitter. Associated Press reporters saw the site, found in a forest outside Izium. Among the trees were hundreds of graves with simple wooden crosses, most marked only with numbers. A larger grave bore a marker indicating that it contained the bodies of 17 Ukrainian soldiers.
Sergei Gorodko, a resident of Izium, said that among the hundreds of bodies buried in individual graves were dozens of adults and children killed in a Russian airstrike on an apartment block. He said some were pulled from the rubble “with their own hands”. Thousands of Russian soldiers fled Izium over the weekend. On Wednesday, the first images emerged from the city described as the second Mariupol due to the heavy bombardment it suffered after its liberation.
EC President: Putin must be on trial for war crimes
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin must be brought before international justice for the war crimes committed in Ukraine.
“Putin must lose this war and be held accountable for his actions. It is an important thing for me,” said Ursula von der Leyen for the television channel of the Bild newspaper.
“There is no doubt that war crimes have been committed in Ukraine, since the start of the Russian offensive at the end of February, “that is why we support the gathering of evidence” for a procedure before the International Criminal Court”, said the head of the European executive, who made Thursday a visit to Kyiv.
“The foundations of our international legal system require us to prosecute such crimes, and ultimately Putin is responsible for them,” she added. Asked about the likelihood that the Russian head of state could be brought to one day before the international justice, Ursula von der Leyen answered: “I think it is possible”.