The United Nations General Assembly approved a U.S.-sponsored resolution that suspends Russia from the UN Human Rights Council, as evidence of atrocities and human rights abuses in Ukraine grows.
The move would have far more credibility if other nations with even worse human rights records would be suspended as well. But the UN is a very selective punisher, and this week, it’s Russia’s turn.
“War criminals have no place in UN bodies aimed at protecting human rights,” Ukraine Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya tweeted after the vote. “Grateful to all member states which supported the relevant UNGA resolution and chose the right side of history.”
Russia’s deputy ambassador Gennady Kuzmin denied Russian involvement in the carnage, saying the evidence was merely “staged events and widely circulated fakes.” He dismissed the resolution as an attempt by the United States to “maintain its dominant position and total control.”
What’s happening in Ukraine is modern warfare at its worst. And according to some of the evidence that’s emerged, Russia is deliberately targeting civilians and carrying out a series of intentional attacks designed to terrorize the population.
Related: Yes, There Were War Crimes in Bucha
Adding credibility to the charges is the confirmation by intelligence sources that the brutal Russian mercenary unit known as the “Wagner Group” was in Ukraine in the area where the worst of the atrocities were reported. The Wagner Group made a name for itself by committing war crimes in Syria and Libya during the civil wars in those nations.
The radio traffic intercepted by the BND makes it seem as though the atrocities perpetrated on civilians in Bucha were neither random acts nor the product of individual soldiers who got out of hand. Rather, say sources familiar with the audio, the material suggests that the troops spoke of the atrocities as though they were simply discussing their everyday lives.
That, say sources familiar with the audio, indicates that the murder of civilians has become a standard element of Russian military activity, potentially even part of a broader strategy. The intention is that of spreading fear among the civilian population and thus reducing the will to resist.
Ukrainian prosecutors are already beginning to document the war crimes — more than 4,500 so far. Whether anyone will ever be punished for them is another story.
The cruelty of the Russian troops who recently pulled out of the Kyiv suburb of Bucha — the inhumanity they inflicted on civilians — is painful to look at. But Ukrainian investigators can’t turn away. It’s their job to document it: Meticulously noting every charred corpse, every victim with a gunshot wound to the head and hands bound behind their back.
It’s grim but vital work, because Russia has been accused of war crimes.
Irina Abramova said her husband Oleg was the love of her life. She described to journalists in Bucha how he was executed by the Russians.
“They took him from our home in his slippers,” she said. “They didn’t ask anything or say anything, they just killed him… They only told him to take off his shirt, kneel down, and they shot him.”
Some observers now say that this conflict will need to be measured in years, not weeks or months. Russia now sees Ukraine as an existential threat, and they believe that not just President Zelenskyy, but the entire Ukraine government needs to be eliminated.
The Russian population is being fed a steady diet of hate — hate for Ukraine, for the U.S., and for NATO. The longer this war goes on, the bigger the chance that someone somewhere will decide that the other side doesn’t deserve to exist, and the button will be pushed.
After that, it won’t matter if the atrocity pictures are faked or not.
