Speaking to the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the world body to hold Russia accountable for war crimes as he laid out atrocities committed by Russian forces in the town of Bucha.
“They were killed in their apartments, houses, blowing up grenades,” Zelenskyy said through a translator. “The civilians were crushed by tanks while sitting in their cars in the middle of the road, just for their pleasure.”
Zelenskyy also urged reform at the UN by kicking Russia out of the Security Council and removing its veto power.
“Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready to close the UN? Do you think that the time of international law is gone? If the answer is no, then you need to act immediately,” he said.
While the Russians are calling the images out of Bucha fake, more images and testimonies of survivors are coming out every day.
Victims include innocent men, women, and children, some were tied up, tortured, and shot at close range.
One man described how men younger than 50 were lined up and shot on the spot. He told ABC News that he only survived because he is 53.
And the mayor of the Ukrainian town of Motyzhyn was killed execution style, along with her husband and son. Their bodies were found in a pit.
“What we’ve seen in Bucha is not the random act of a rogue unit,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “It’s a deliberate campaign to kill, to torture, to rape, to commit atrocities.”
U.S. and European leaders are set to announce more sanctions against Russian government officials and their family members. The European Union is reportedly proposing sanctions directly against Vladimir Putin’s two daughters.
The U.S. is also sending an additional $100 million in security assistance to Ukraine, helping its military secure more Javelin anti-armor systems.
Meanwhile, Russian forces continue to deploy to the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine. Human rights groups say the situation in the besieged city of Mariupol is desperate and the atrocities there are likely much worse. Residents there have been without running water or electricity for weeks.
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