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| Christopher Occhicone for The Wall Street Journal |
Analysis of satellite imagery indicates expanding mass burial sites outside Kyiv and Mariupol
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to unfold, it is impossible to determine an accurate death count. But expanding mass graves give a glimpse into the gruesome human toll.
Bucha
More than 100 dead civilians were buried in mass graves dug by local officials in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha. Russian forces arrived there in the first days of the invasion that began Feb. 24 and lasted about five weeks. Maxar Technologies observed initial signs of dirt excavation at a gravesite located at St. Andrew’s Church two weeks later, while the Russian army occupied the city.
Satellite images taken on March 31 revealed the existence of a 45-foot trench adjoining the existing church cemetery. Moscow has denied targeting civilians in Ukraine and called video and photographic images from Bucha staged.
Maxar owns and operates commercial Earth-imaging satellites that collect imagery around the world, and the company makes these images available to news organizations.
Manhush
Fighting has leveled much of the city of Mariupol, and the civilian death toll so far is unknown. “The worst war crime of the 21st century has been committed in Mariupol,” the city’s mayor, Vadym Boychenko, said in remarks posted by the municipality on social media. “Putin is exterminating Ukrainians. He has already killed tens of thousands of civilians in Mariupol.”
Satellite images taken March 19 showed what appeared to be more than 200 mass graves in the town of Manhush, just outside Mariupol. The sites, each measuring around 100 feet wide, could contain as many 9,000 people in total, municipal authorities said. --->LOTS MORE HERE
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| REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo |
The World Health Organization (WHO) is gathering evidence for a possible war crimes investigation into attacks it says it has documented by Russia on healthcare facilities in Ukraine, it said in Kyiv on Saturday.
WHO Emergencies Director Mike Ryan, on an unannounced visit together with WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, told a news conference it was the explicit responsibility of warring parties to avoid attacking health facilities, yet the WHO had already documented 200 attacks on hospitals and clinics in the country.
"Intentional attacks on healthcare facilities are a breach of international humanitarian law and as such - based on investigation and attribution of the attack - represent war crimes in any situation," Ryan said.
"We continue to document and bear witness to these attacks ... and we trust that the U.N. system and the International Criminal Court and others will take the necessary investigations in order to assess the criminal intent behind these attacks."
Russia has denied previous accusations by Ukraine and Western nations of possible war crimes and has also denied targeting civilians in the war. --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:
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