A prosecutor from the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, visited the war-torn Ukrainian towns of Bucha and Borodyanka where murdered civilians and mass graves were discovered earlier in April, and described the situation as a “crime scene.”
“Ukraine is a crime scene. We’re here because we have reasonable grounds to believe that crimes within the jurisdiction of the ICC are being committed. We have to pierce the fog of war to get to the truth,” the ICC quoted Khan as saying after his visit to Bucha.
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“The voices of those impacted by alleged crimes must be at the centre of our independent work to establish the truth. Survivors and the families of victims will be full partners in our collective efforts to deliver justice,” Khan further said, as the ICC tweeted images of the prosecutor engaging with residents and visiting towns devastated by Russian attacks.
Prior to his visit to the devastated towns of Bucha and Borodyanka, Khan met Ukrainian Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova in Kyiv to discuss co-operation on the international ICC probe into alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
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The meeting saw the two prosecutors reach an agreement on “deepening engagement and further strengthening partnerships crucial to delivering accountability for [international] crimes committed in Ukraine,” as per the ICC.
Khan’s visit to Ukraine is part of the ongoing ICC investigation into alleged Russian war crimes in the eastern European country, which was formally opened on March 2.
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Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Kyiv has repeatedly accused Russian troops of deliberately targeting civilians, including children, describing such attacks as war crimes.
Over the past couple of weeks, disturbing images of mass graves have surfaced, while Russian troops have also been accused of rape and sexual violence by several Ukrainian women.
