Day 206: Russia Alleges Mass Burial Site Holds Ukrainian Troops Killed in Action; Biden Warns Against Nuclear Weapons
Facts
- Amid the discovery of a mass burial site near Izyum in the Kharkiv region on Thurs. - which Ukrainian and Western officials alleged were further examples of Russian atrocities - a Russian official alleged the bodies were deceased Ukrainian fighters who were unburied after fighting in the region.
- Oleh Syniehubov, Ukraine's head of the military administration in Kharkiv, alleged the burial site contained the bodies of 450 civilians and that 99% showed signs of violent death, with several corpses showing signs of torture or execution. Meanwhile, Alexander Malkevich, a member of Russia's Civic Chamber, alleged Russian troops, alongside members of the local administration, buried Ukrainian soldiers left behind on battlefields. Neither claims have been independently confirmed.
- Although images from the scene confirmed the presence of "ВСУ" on a number of the wooden crosses – representing the Armed Forces of Ukraine – a number of others were marked only with a number. A UN spokesperson on Fri. said the agency would send monitors, but as of yet, there were no reports of an official UN probe. Meanwhile the EU has called for the establishment of an international tribunal for war crimes.
- Elsewhere, in an interview released on Fri., US Pres. Joe Biden – when prompted by CBS News as to what he'd say to Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin if he was considering using chemical or tactical nuclear weapons – said: "Don't. Don't. Don't. You will change the face of war unlike anything since World War II," adding that the response would be "consequential." Russia's foreign ministry last month called allegations that Russia was threatening the use of nuclear weapons "completely groundless and unacceptable."
- Meanwhile, Putin made his first comments on Ukraine's counteroffensive, warning that if the counterattacks continue, Moscow will launch a "more serious" military response. His remarks come as defense officials announced on Saturday that Russian forces are assembling a new defensive line in Ukraine's northeast after Kyiv's troops reportedly broke through the previous one.
- On the ground, while explosions hit a Russian-controlled military base in Melitopol, Russian shelling continued to be reported in Kherson, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv where at least one civilian was reported injured. Ukrainian officials in Donetsk said two civilians were killed and 11 more were injured. Pro-Russia separatists in the region said three civilians were killed and 12 were injured in Ukrainian shelling.
Sources: Tass, Ukrinform, RTE, BBC News, Al Jazeera, and Guardian.
Narratives
- Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Ukrinform. As we have seen in Bucha, Irpin, Mariupol and now Izyum, Russia is committing genocide against Ukrainians. There are people with hands tied behind their backs, one had a rope around their neck. These people were tortured and executed. Russia must be held accountable.
- Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by Tass. Like elsewhere in Ukraine, Russian troops buried deceased soldiers who'd been killed in battle but were left behind by their so-called comrades. Allegations that these were victims of Russian atrocities are spread in a coordinated campaign to weaken Russia and justify further Western-led provocations.
- Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by USA Today. There have been many brazenly false claims against both sides in this war, so allegations such as these need to be taken with a grain of salt until independently verified.