Ukrainian police carry the body of a dead civilian after they pulled him out of a well at the Buzova gas station
The Ukrainian Prosecutor General said that 1,222 bodies have been found in the Kyiv region since the withdrawal of Russian forces from the region.
She added in an interview with Sky News, that the Ukrainian authorities are investigating 5,600 cases of alleged war crimes committed by Russian forces since the start of the invasion, and that they have identified more than 500 suspected war criminals, including senior military and government officials in Russia.
“What we see in all regions of Ukraine are war crimes and crimes against humanity, and we are doing everything we can to document them,” she added.
She stressed that Ukraine has evidence that Russia carried out a missile attack on a train station in the city of Kramatorsk in the eastern Donetsk region, killing more than 50 people who were waiting for a train to take them west, to a relatively safe place.
The Russian invasion forced about a quarter of the population of 44 million from their homes, reduced cities to rubble and killed or injured thousands.
Russia denied responsibility for Friday’s attack, which it claimed was not caused by a missile landing. It also denied targeting civilians.
Russia launched other attacks in eastern and southern Ukraine.
The governor of the Dnipro region said that the airport and the surrounding infrastructure were destroyed by repeated Russian shelling, which wounded at least one person.
The head of the Regional Military Administration, Valentin Reznichenko, said on his account on Telegram today that Russian missile strikes hit an airport in the city of Dnipro in central eastern Ukraine and a village in the region.
“There was another attack on the Dnipro airport. Both the airport and the nearby infrastructure were completely destroyed. Despite this, the missiles are still flying,” he added.
Reznichenko said that an infrastructure facility was bombed in Zvonetsky, adding that the authorities were trying to get more information about the damage and losses.
In Kharkiv, in northeastern Ukraine, authorities said two people were killed in the bombing.
It added that a large column of Russian armored vehicles heading south from Kharkiv towards the Donbass River was attacked by Ukrainian forces during the night.
picture released, Maxar Technologies
An alleged photo of a column of Russian tanks in eastern Kharkiv
The Russian Defense Ministry said it also carried out missile strikes in Mykolaiv on the Black Sea.
Ukraine’s presidential adviser, Mikhailo Podolak, said in a statement to state television that “Ukraine is ready for big battles” against Russia.
He added that Ukraine should defeat Moscow’s forces in the eastern Donbass region, where Moscow controls two separatist regions, for more negotiating power before any meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Ukraine is ready for big battles. Ukraine must win them, including in Donbass. Once that happens, Ukraine will have a stronger negotiating position,” he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.
“After that, the presidents will meet. It may take two or three weeks,” he added.
Mediation and support efforts
An Austrian government spokesman said that Austrian Chancellor Karl Neihammer will travel to Russia on Monday to meet President Putin.
The planned meeting with the Russian leader follows a visit by Nehamer to Ukraine on Saturday, during which he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday that the United States is committed to providing Ukraine with “the weapons it needs” to defend itself against Russia.
He added that the Biden administration would send more weapons to Ukraine to prevent Russia from seizing more territory and targeting civilians, which Washington calls war crimes.
“We will provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs to fend off the Russians and prevent them from taking over more of the cities and towns where they are committing these crimes,” Sullivan said on ABC News.
Moscow has rejected accusations by Ukraine and Western countries of war crimes.
picture released, Archyde.com
Sullivan added that the United States is “working around the clock to deliver our weapons…to organize and coordinate arms deliveries from many other countries to Ukraine.”
“Weapons arrive every day, including today,” Sullivan emphasized.
On Saturday, Russia appointed a new general to command its forces in Ukraine, Alexander Dvornikov, who had extensive military experience in Syria.
With this appointment, Sullivan expects that Dvornikov will allow further atrocities against the Ukrainian civilian population.
The White House said last week that the United States has sent $1.7 billion in military aid to Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion on February 24.
The arms shipments included defensive Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and Javelin anti-tank missiles, as well as ammunition and armour. But the Ukrainian president is pressing the leaders of the United States and Europe to provide weapons and heavy equipment to repel Russia in the eastern region of the country, where Russia is expected to step up its military efforts.
During an interview with CBS News, which will be broadcast later on Sunday, Zelensky expressed his doubts that the United States would deliver the weapons he said were necessary.
Ukraine’s ability to fend off a Russian incursion “depends on how quickly the United States will help us. And frankly, our survival depends on that,” Zelensky said.
“I have absolute confidence in our people and in our armed forces, but unfortunately I do not trust that we will get everything we need,” he added.