What happened in Boutcha in Ukraine?

Images of massacres of civilians in Boutcha, a town in the northwest suburbs of kyiv, have been around the world since Saturday. Explanations of the situation in five questions.

What exactly happened in Boutcha?

Very soon after the start of the war, the Russian army advanced to the outskirts of kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. The weeks that followed saw fierce fighting that partly devastated suburban towns, including Boutcha and Irpin. During the last weekend, however, the majority of the troops present in the region withdrew in order to go and consolidate their positions in the east of the country. The journalists on the ground were therefore able to enter Boutcha, a small town of 40,000 inhabitants recently freed from the Russian presence. They discovered horror scenes there.

Corpses, at least six of which had their wrists tied behind their backs, littered the streets. Ukrainian authorities quickly reported that more than 300 bodies had been thrown into mass graves, for a provisional toll of more than 400 civilians killed. Although an independent investigation has not yet been carried out, there is every reason to believe that Russian forces committed these atrocities.

How did Russia and Ukraine react?

Wearing a bulletproof vest and accompanied by soldiers, the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, went to Boutcha on Monday. He said “war crimes” which will be “recognized as genocide” were committed there. The day before, he had announced that a “special mechanism” would be created to investigate “all Russian crimes”.

Russia, meanwhile, “categorically” denies the accusations related to the discovery of the bodies in Boutcha, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday. He assured that Russian Defense Ministry experts had found evidence of “video tampering” and “false” images. The head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, announced that his country would present Monday evening at the United Nations headquarters “precise documents” on the “true nature of the events”.

What was the reaction of the international community?

Westerners unanimously rose up against the Boutcha murders. On Monday, US President Joe Biden called for a “war crimes trial” while once again calling Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal”. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, called for preserving “all evidence” of these “possible war crimes” and “human rights violations”.

Members of the French, British, Japanese, Polish, Spanish and German governments have also denounced the violence of Russian troops in Boutcha.

What are the possible measures to punish Russia?

An investigation must be carried out before concluding that war crimes have been committed in Ukraine. A trial could possibly take place at the International Criminal Court (ICC), which sits in The Hague, and which was created with the aim of trying individuals prosecuted in particular for war crimes. The ICC has been investigating allegations of this nature in Ukraine since March 2.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, for her part, announced that the European Union was ready to send teams of investigators to Ukraine to help collect evidence. This approach could, according to her, “support the Ukrainian services responsible for prosecution”. She also indicated that “talks are underway” for the ICC to join this joint investigation.

On the UN side, the American ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, announced on Monday that she would try to obtain the “suspension” of Russia from the UN Human Rights Council. It is planned that Russia will sit on this council until 2023.

What can Canada do in all of this?

Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly strongly condemned Russia on Monday on the sidelines of a visit to Finland. “These are clearly war crimes and crimes against humanity,” declared the head of Canadian diplomacy. She also warned that there would be “more Canadian sanctions against Russian and Belarusian entities and individuals” and that these would be “announced shortly.” They should target nine Russians and nine Belarusians who are “close associates” of the regime, according to a government statement. M^me Joly also expressed the wish that the G7 countries “do more”.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the killings “shocking and horrifying” and added that “those responsible for these attacks […] will be brought to justice”.

Some Western countries have already put new sanctions in place. France announced on Monday that it was expelling 35 Russian diplomats and Germany, 40. European Union High Representative Josep Borrell announced that the 27 member countries were urgently discussing new sanctions.

With Agence France-Presse

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