Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky denounced on Tuesday April 12 “hundreds of rape casesobserved in areas previously occupied by the Russian army, “including underage girls and toddlers “.
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“In the areas liberated from the occupants, the recording and investigation of war crimes committed by Russia are continuing. Almost daily, new mass graves are foundhe said, addressing the Lithuanian parliament via video link. “Thousands and thousands of victims. Hundreds of cases of torture. Bodies continue to be found in drains and cellars“, he continued.
“Hundreds of rape cases have been recorded, including those of underage girls and toddlers. Even a baby! It’s scary just to talk about it“, Launched the Ukrainian president. He mentioned, without going into details, a video sent, according to him, by an identified paratrooper or member of the Russian special services, where we see “what he does to this baby, how he tortures him“. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda reacted emotionally to these words. “It is simply impossible to imagine greater horrors: President Zelensky today spoke of a baby being raped“, he said.
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Volodymyr Zelensky also lamented that “some EU countries still do not dare to decide when they will even limit Russian hydrocarbon purchases“, despite the “massive murders in Boutcha, deportations of populations” and some “premeditated destruction of peaceful cities by Russian missiles and bombs“. Testimonies reported by the media corroborate the fears of NGOs, which point to indications of the use of rape as “war weapon“. A Ukrainian woman told AFP that she was raped by two Russian soldiers after they learned that she was the wife of a Ukrainian soldier.
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