The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, met with the Attorney General of Ukraine, Iryna Venediktova, and visited the city of Bucha, east of Kiev, from where he said that “Ukraine is a crime scene”.
“We are here because we have reasonable grounds to believe that crimes are being committed that fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC. We have to go through the fog of war to get to the truth,” Khan said in a tweet published Wednesday on the court's verified account.
The publication was accompanied by images of the British lawyer inspecting burnt vehicles and attending to local media. Speaking to the press, Khan also indicated that an ICC forensic team got to work “so that we can really make sure that we separate truth from fiction.” He added: “We need to keep an open mind and we need to follow the evidence,” he added.
The court assured that, in its meeting with the Ukrainian prosecutor, it was agreed to “deepen commitment and further strengthen alliances” because “they are crucial for achieving accountability for international crimes committed in Ukraine.”
On March 2, the ICC Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation in this country and began evidence-gathering activities. Neither Russia nor Ukraine are States parties to the international tribunal, but Kiev filed two applications, in November 2013 and in February 2014, accepting its jurisdiction.
The Russian occupation of Bucha resulted in more than 400 civilians dead, according to authorities, and their bodies have been found in basements, private homes, in graves or dumped in the street.
Today, the Ukrainian intelligence service denounced that Russian troops intend to remove any kind of evidence confirming that they have committed crimes against humanity in Ukraine and that they use mobile crematoria, especially in the city of Mariupol, so as not to leave a trace of their atrocities, as allegedly happened in Bucha.
Russia denies responsibility for the deaths and its president Vladimir Putin claims that reports of Russian soldiers shooting civilians are “false”.
(With information from AFP, EFE and EuropaPress)
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