The German Prosecutor’s Office reported this Sunday, February 5, that its investigators collected “hundreds” of evidence of war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine, mainly related to the Bucha massacre and attacks on civilian infrastructure. Moscow is trying to distance itself from the accusations and in the last few hours it denounced an alleged kyiv plan to demolish buildings and accuse the Kremlin of attacking civilians. Hostilities intensify in the face of the first year of the war.
New evidence of alleged Russian war crimes emerges as kyiv warns of a renewed offensive by Moscow on the first anniversary of the invasion.
Peter Frank, the attorney general of Germany, a country that sent dozens of investigators to the field, said that in his office there are “hundreds” of evidence pointing to the responsibility of Vladimir Putin’s army in abominable crimes.
The evidence focuses particularly on “the mass murders in Bucha and the attacks on civilian infrastructure in Ukraine,” Frank stressed.
Bucha, a town on the outskirts of kyiv, was one of the areas that the Moscow military took in the first phase of the war when they unsuccessfully tried to take the Ukrainian capital.
The defenses of the invaded country prevented their advance, but the surrounding towns resisted in a kind of shield and their inhabitants suffered serious harassment. Among them, executions, torture and rape, according to the survivors’ accounts to the authorities and civil organizations, after the areas were liberated by the local Army.
Much of the evidence was collected after interviews with Ukrainian refugees and the head of the prosecution body stressed that the next step will be “to prepare for a possible subsequent court case, either in Germany or with our foreign partners or an international court.”
The German Public Prosecutor’s Office has already appealed to the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows the prosecution of certain serious crimes no matter where they occurred. He did it to try Syrian citizens for atrocities committed during the civil war in that country and hopes to carry out a similar process for the cases that occurred in Ukraine.
Moscow says kyiv plans ‘fake’ attack to accuse Kremlin
Amid international pressure to judge Russia, its top officials are aiming for a backlash.
In the last few hours, the Russian Defense Ministry assured that the Ukrainian authorities are allegedly preparing an attack on Kramatorsk, in the east of the country, in which they would demolish buildings in order to accuse Putin’s troops of attacking civilians.
In addition, the Russian government indicated that kyiv would use these actions to pressure its Western allies to increase their arms supplies.
“The bombing of medical institutions will be presented as another ‘atrocity’ by Russian troops, which will require a response from the world community and will accelerate the supply of long-range missiles to kyiv (to be used) in attacks on Russian territory,” indicated the Defense portfolio.
The Kremlin called the alleged operation a “false flag.” However, he did not present evidence to support his accusation.
The accusations come after last Thursday, February 2, a Russian missile killed at least three people when it hit a residential building in that city, detailed the Ukrainian Police. The Russian government has not ruled on the matter.
Despite the complaints, including those from human rights organizations and victims, throughout this year Moscow has maintained its position of denying attacks against civilians, while calling the conflict it ordered on February 24, 2022 a “special military operation ” to “denazify” Ukraine.
kyiv warns of major offensive on first anniversary of war
The Ukrainian Army confirmed that it has information about a possible renewed Russian onslaught this month, in the first year of the war.
However, Ukraine’s top military commanders say it has the reserves to contain Moscow’s troops, even if the latest military aid announced by the West does not arrive on time.
Following a push from Poland, which shares a border with Ukraine, several European Union nations, including the initially reluctant Germany, agreed to deliver dozens of Leopard2 tanks, powerful German-made combat vehicles.
The United States joined in by promising to deliver examples of its Abrams tanks. However, its transfer and handling represent a logistical challenge.
“Not all Western weapons will arrive on time, but we are ready. We have created our resources and reserves, which we can deploy and with which we can contain the attack,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said.
kyiv is preparing for a major assault, but the Russian siege does not cease and this Sunday the attacks from Moscow hit a university and a residential building in Kharkiv, in the east.
According to local authorities, at least five people were injured and the target of the Russian rockets was the center of the city, the second largest in the nation.
Meanwhile, fierce fighting broke out in northern Bakhmut, the focus of Russian attention for months, but which has launched a push in recent weeks with the accompaniment of the Russian group of Wagner mercenaries.
It is a paramilitary force questioned for serious human rights violations committed during conflicts between nations in Africa and in Syria, where they have fought on behalf of Russia. Now, the private group is making its way into the battles in Ukraine, where it even claimed the capture of Soledar, a city in the Donetsk Oblast.
Fierce fighting continues, with particular focus in the east, where President Zelensky acknowledged this weekend that the situation is becoming increasingly difficult, with Russia sending more men to the front lines.
With Reuters, AP and EFE
