Horrific Bucha CCTV Images Are Released
A global food crisis is predicted, and Mariupol is occupied by the Russian for now
Images have been released showing nine Ukrainians volunteer soldiers being marched to their death. They had been manning checkpoints before they were outnumbered by the Russian weapons and troops and fled to take shelter. The Russians searched for them, then marched them out of the house they were hiding in, then brutally executed them. One survived to tell the tale by pretending he was dead.
Despite what Zelenskyy has said, Ukraine was not fully prepared for the invasion in terms of weapons or troops. I recall days before the invasion where the government was offering arms to civilians to defend themselves. This reminded me of the American Revolution back in the 18th century, when citizens had the right to bear arms as there was no national army, and each state relied on their own militia or to protect themselves.
We seem to be at a stalemate, where the West keeps delivering aid and passing bills to release more funds, while Russia keeps killing people, launching missiles and attacking cities. The alliances are discussing matters—how to fund the recovery of Ukraine, protect vulnerable states, and how to deal with Russia. Ukraine is dependent on the West for funds and support and keep fighting, but it is not enough to get the Russians out of Ukraine. Only when Russia is forced to admit defeat can this conflict truly end. The Russians can use mercenaries and troops from their client states and allies, whereas Ukraine’s allies cannot or will not engage. We have been here before as well, and when it came down to it (after multiple deaths and destruction), allies simply had to engage before they were attacked themselves. The question remains, how many more deaths must there be, and how many more cities must be destroyed before that happens?
WARNING: Below are images from the CCTV footage that are disturbing.
Day 87 (21 May)
Zelenskyy gives a pre-recorded interview stating that the conflict could only be ‘fully resolved through diplomacy’. That part is true, as in ‘fully’ but that requires the other side to concede as Germany did back in the Second World War, and that was because Hitler committed suicide. Zelenskyy claims that Ukraine was prepared for the war—I disagree, they were prepared for a war to defend themselves, but only to hold off the enemy until other forces came to assist them. Ukraine may have received support from 42 states in the ICJ case, but the UN Security Council enforces any action, and Russia as a member can veto any action as can China. Therefore, any meaningful action is unlikely.
The Russians claim that Mariupol has been liberated, while the soldiers were stood down by Zelenskyy:
"Today the boys received a clear signal from the military command that they can get out and save their lives"
There is no exact figure as to how many soldiers have surrendered, but reports state around 2,000. With Russian soldiers no longer needed in Mariupol, they can be deployed to Donbas or Odesa, other targets.
At the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, Japan, USA and Australia walked out when the Russian delegate spoke.
At the Cannes Film Festival, an activist strips to reveal a painted Ukrainian flag with a message to ‘stop the rape’.
There are reports from Russian news agencies that claim that weapons sent from the West have been targeted at a railway station near Zhytomyr. A missile was launched from the sea, and other claims include destroying more fuel depots in Odesa.
The US has signed a bill to offer $40 billion in aid and support to Ukraine.
Portugal has also signed a bill to offer €250 million of aid to Ukraine.
The UN has predicted that the world will suffer a food shortage after the war in Ukraine that may last several years. This is due to Russia holding exports of grain hostage in the Black Sea, and also stealing grain. How did this happen? The West did little to aid protect or support the area, as aid came 6 weeks late as we know. This often happens as an effect of war, and the poorer countries will be hit first.
Truss, (UK Foreign Secretary) has stated that Moldova and Ukraine should be armed with NATO grade weapons in order to defend themselves. Moldova notes that there is not an imminent threat of invasion from Russia, but accepts there is a significant risk.
A volunteer morgue worker in Bucha as told a reporter that 70% of the bodies were tortured and girls as young as 10 years old had evidence of being raped before they were killed. This is when you want to ask Macron, how can he dignify his request to Europe not to humiliate Putin and to go easy on him because we must restore trust and peace at some point.
Ukraine has been intercepting calls from Russian soldiers and has set up a hotline for them to surrender, as a number do not wish to fight.
Yesterday, the New York Times had acquired CCTV footage of Ukrainian volunteers being marched away by the Russians, and who were then executed. The footage is backed up by drone images and an eye witness who survived by pretending to be dead. The faces of the Russians who carried out the executions can be seen in the footage, and neighbours also saw the men being marched away and recorded the event. There is no doubt that these are war crimes, and as volunteer troops they were technically prisoners of war, but wee hunted down and executed.
The images are horrific, and we could debate how this could have been avoided, yet we know that if Germany and France had not vetoed the NATO application in 2008, then Crimea would not have happened or 24 February 2022. If you leave a door open for Russia to attack, then they will do so at any given opportunity. That is why only a defeated Russia can lead to peace and any chance of democracy in Ukraine and neighbouring states.
EL I can think of no reply worthy of the words you have written and the images you have shown.
You’re absolutely right that these images are horrific.
It’s incredible how clueless the Russian troops are to not realize that they are on CCTV. This makes trying war crimes that much easier as now there is video evidence. Of course, rather than building a war crimes case, it is much more important for this to end entirely.
I feel so helpless and unable to make a difference. I so appreciate what you, @EL, are doing by documenting what’s happening, and more importantly, what’s not happening. So disappointed in all the world bodies that were meant to prevent this type of aggression in the first place, and to provide assistance for countries under attack in the second place.