Ukrainians and Europeans accuse Russians of committing atrocities

There are murdered men whose bodies bear signs of torture

Ukrainian and European officials expressed outrage on Sunday at what they said were atrocities committed by Russian forces near Kyiv before they withdrew from the region to focus their attacks elsewhere.

Qazet.az reports the mayor of Bucha, a town 37 km (23 miles) northwest of the capital, said on Saturday that 300 residents had been killed during a month-long occupation by the Russian army. Victims were seen by Reuters in a mass grave and still lying on the streets. 

Ukraine said on Saturday its forces had retaken all areas around the capital, reclaiming complete control of the region for the first time since Russia launched its invasion on Feb 24.

Russia has pulled back forces that had threatened Kyiv from the north to regroup for battles in eastern Ukraine. There was no Russian comment on the claim that the Kyiv region was entirely in Ukrainian hands and Reuters could not verify this.

Russia has previously denied targetting civilians and rejected allegations of war crimes in what it calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine.

The Kremlin and the Russian defence ministry did not reply to requests for comment when asked on Saturday about the bodies found in Bucha. The defence ministry did not immediately respond when asked about this again on Sunday.

An aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that Ukrainian troops had found the bodies of women who had been raped and set alight as well as the bodies of local officials and children.

"There are murdered men whose bodies bear signs of torture. Their hands were tied and they were killed by shots to the back of the head," Oleksiy Arestovich told Ukrainian television.

Sergey Nikiforov, a spokesman for Zelensky, told Britain's BBC: "I have to be very careful with my wording, but it looks exactly like war crimes."

Senior European officials said any potential war crimes should be investigated.

"Shocked by news of atrocities committed by Russian forces. EU assists Ukraine in documenting war crimes," European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Twitter, adding all cases needed to be pursued by the International Court of Justice.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said there was "increasing evidence of appalling acts by the invading forces in towns such as Irpin and Bucha and said London would fully support any investigation by the International Criminal Court.