Russia -Ukraine War Updates: Ukraine says more than 900 civilian bodies found in Kyiv region

• Image Credit: Internet

• Apr 18, 2022 | Dhupali Das

Andriy Nebytov, the director of Kyiv's regional police unit, said victims were left on the streets or buried in makeshift graves around the city. He added that reports stated that 95% of them were killed by gunshot wounds.

Digital Desk: Following Russia's retreat, bodies of over 900 civilians were discovered in Kyiv's territory, out of which the majority were fatally shot, Ukrainian police claimed on Friday, implying that many individuals were "simply assassinated."

The startling figure was revealed shortly after Russia's Defense Ministry pledged to intensify missile attacks on Kyiv in retaliation for claimed Ukrainian incursions into Russian territory. Following the shocking loss of Moscow's flagship in the Black Sea, this frightening warning was sent.

Despite its threat, Russia continued to prepare for a military invasion of eastern Ukraine. Violence continues in Mariupol, the battered southern port city, where residents reported witnessing Russian troops digging up corpses. According to regional governor Oleh Sinehubov, the shelling of a residential area in Kharkiv killed seven people, including a seven-month-old child, and injured 34 others.

Andriy Nebytov, the director of Kyiv's regional police unit, said victims were left on the streets or buried in makeshift graves around the city. He added that reports stated that 95% of them were killed by gunshot wounds.

"As a result, we realise that people were just executed in the streets during the Russian occupation," Nebytov added.

Moreover, Russian forces occupying sections of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in Ukraine's south have been accused of intimidating citizens and chasing down everyone who served in the Ukrainian military or administration by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

"The occupiers believe that they will be able to better govern this land by doing so.  They are, however, completely incorrect. They're deceiving themselves.  Russia's problem is that the entire Ukrainian populace does not accept it and will never accept it. Russia has permanently lost Ukraine," Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy also stated in a video message that he addressed the destiny of Mariupol with top military and intelligence officers. He added that he could not provide all the details; however, all are doing everything needed to save the people of the war-torn country.  

More conflict could be on the way for Kyiv after Russian authorities accused Ukraine of injuring seven people and destroying around 100 homes with airstrikes in Bryansk, a region bordering Ukraine. On Thursday, authorities in another Russian border territory reported shelling from Ukraine.

"In response to the Kyiv nationalist regime committing any terrorist actions or diversions on Russian territory, the frequency and scale of missile attacks on objects in Kyiv will be increased," Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov warned.

Further, Konashenkov said that  Russia fired missiles to damage a missile system repair and production plant near Kyiv.

However, officials from Ukraine have not confirmed striking Russian targets, and the reports have not been independently corroborated.

However, Ukrainian officials said missiles were fired against a vital Russian warship.

"A flagship' Russian warship is a worthy diving site. In the Black Sea, we now have one more diving area. After our victory in the fight, we will definitely visit the wreck," Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov tweeted on Friday.

The threat of further attacks from Russia did not deter Kyiv residents from enjoying a beautiful and somewhat warmer spring Friday as the weekend neared. People were out on the streets in greater numbers than normal, walking dogs, riding electric scooters, and strolling hand in hand.

After Russian troops failed to conquer the city and left to concentrate on eastern Ukraine, leaving behind evidence of suspected war crimes, such faint indications of prewar life have emerged in the capital. However, a resumption of the bombing might entail a return to the constant blare of air raid sirens heard in the early days of the invasion and terrifying nights spent hiding in subway stations.

Locals in Mariupol reported seeing the Russian military digging up bodies buried in domestic courtyards and refusing to allow new funerals "of those killed by them," according to the city council.

According to Oleksandr Motuzyanyk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, fighting continued in industrial sectors and the port, and Russia utilised the Tu-22M3 long-range bomber for the first time to attack the city.

The capture of Mariupol would allow Russian forces in the south, who arrived via the occupied Crimean Peninsula, to fully connect with troops in the Donbas region, Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland and the target of the looming onslaught.