Ukraine Cites Evidence Of Russian War Crimes

Some European Union governments are pushing for the bloc to quickly impose new sanctions in response to multiple reports that Russian troops executed unarmed civilians in Ukrainian towns, according to diplomats familiar with the discussions.

The European Commission was already honing measures that would mostly focus on closing loopholes, strengthening existing actions -- such as export controls on technology goods and fully sanctioning banks already cut off from the SWIFT global payments system -- and expanding the list of sanctioned individuals.

Some EU nations argue there is now a trigger for even more penalties to be put in place with speed, with Ukrainian officials reporting evidence of war crimes committed by Russian troops in northern areas, according to a diplomat familiar with the discussions.

There is not yet consensus on all the details for a new package, or when to implement it, even as the bloc’s executive arm seeks in the meantime to put forward a set of corrective measures as early as this week. A small number of member states, including Germany, are opposed to sanctioning Russia’s energy sector, its maritime trade and other key industries, and EU sanctions require unanimous support.

The question for EU members is what actions would spur a fresh and fuller set of sanctions. Some continue to argue such measures should only be explored if Russia were to use chemical weapons or capture a major city, three diplomats said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are private.

Other states say the reported events in places like Bucha, a town on the outskirts of Kyiv, are enough to warrant action. One of the diplomats said even the fresh measures on the table were not enough given the extent of the potential war crimes. Countries like France and Germany were quick to condemn the reported actions in Bucha, while Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said a fifth around of “strong EU sanctions” should come as soon as possible.

Ukraine has accused Russian soldiers of killing unarmed civilians, with officials saying they found hundreds of bodies in Bucha after Russian troops left. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, posted several photos on Twitter of dead people, some with their hands tied behind their backs.

Zelenskiy renewed charges that Russia is committing genocide in Ukraine, telling CBS’s “Face the Nation” his citizens “are being destroyed and exterminated.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the claims of war crimes. “It’s clear to the naked eye that there are a lot of fakes and staged shots,” Peskov said by text message when asked to comment on images released by Ukrainian officials. Russia’s Defense Ministry called the accusations by Ukraine a “provocation” in a statement on its website.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in a Twitter post Sunday that anyone responsible for war crimes must be held accountable and sanctions would be tightened against Russia. Chancellor Olaf Scholz demanded access for organizations like the International Red Cross to document what happened in Bucha, according to a statement from his office Sunday.

It comes as Russia shifts tactics in the war, redeploying troops away from the north after weeks of failure to make ground. Instead its campaign is focusing on areas in the east, including the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Donbas, and Mariupol, a port city that has already been under siege for weeks.

Odesa meantime was rocked by explosions early Sunday. Russia fired high-precision missiles from ships and aircraft that struck an oil refinery and three storage facilities near the southwestern port city, Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

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[professorblack]

Who's going to prosecute war crimes?
Who's going to pay to rebuild Ukraine?

[afilthylittlegoblin]

This comment section is a fucking dumsper fire. Wtf

[tuliob]

😱😱😱 WE ALL KNEW THEY WERE COMMITTING WAR CRIMES.

[TomByron-hs]

Real life war is alot different than in a Chuck Norris movie

[diabetesdestroyer]

Both sides have committed war crimes. War.

[jimsaetern]

Do a body still flexible after that person died for a few days???

[reverendkrumsieg]

Bio weapons labs on my boarder would be a breaking point for me to cant blame Putin

[mckcpaul]

When is Iraq going to cite George Bush for war crimes against humanity, LMFAO?

[ariesomega]

All this, taking place, while negotiators sat at tables and ate chocolates & ☠️ with one another. 😞

[matthamil]

Every country committed war crimes during war

[americanpaisareturns]

There are no war crimes during a time of war. War itself is the crime.

[zackcantrell]

We have seen carpet bombing of cities in civilian areas. Plus 6 or more hi level generals have killed on the Russian side. Without proper command establish acts like these are very possible and I believe that they were done. Maybe in the several hundred but I pray not in the thousands. Any number is to much. Prayers for those involved

[tptptptp]

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times

Matthew

24 Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2 “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us, ” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah, ’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

15 “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation, ’[a] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. 18 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 19 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20 Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.

22 “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time.

26 “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness, ’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms, ’ do not believe it. 27 For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

29 “Immediately after the distress of those days

“‘the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[b]
30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth[c] will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.[d] 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it[e] is near, right at the door. 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

The Day and Hour Unknown

36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, [f] but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time, ’ 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

[graigfaison]

Ukraine should be in hollywood. Ukrainian government is like white helmets in Siria nowadays

[chulopapi]

need to get DNA evidence from rape victims to track down the offenders ❗❗❗

[HollowNoFace]

So that means the war wasnt an invasion but it was an agreement between both parties

[painandsuffer]

There is no war crime in war.
It's war.

[sharkbite]

This is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

[jgaskell]

Psst sanctions on citizens has always been a war crime, also. 🇺🇸?

[syahrulkhaeruman]

Please don't make peace ukraine and russia keep fighting we are NATO members very happy you guys fight each other so our weapons sell well.