Ukrainian authorities have found a mass burial site of more than 440 bodies in the eastern city of Izium on Thursday, 15 September, that was recaptured from Russian forces, informs British media The Guardian.
Serhiy Bolvinov, the chief police investigator for Kharkiv region, told that some of the people had been killed by shelling and airstrikes.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy likened the discovery to what happened in Bucha, on the outskirts of Kyiv, saying in a Thursday, 15 September, night video address:
«Russia is leaving death behind it everywhere and must be held responsible.»
Izium resident Sergei Gorodko said that among the hundreds buried in individual graves were dozens of adults and children killed in a Russian airstrike on an apartment building.
Russian artillery fire, missile, and air strikes inflicted damage on infrastructure in more than 20 settlements across Ukraine on Thursday, 15 September, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported.
Meanwhile, fighting continued in the east and south of Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram that: «the path to the return of all our territories is getting clearer.»
The European Union chief, Ursula von der Leyen, said on Thursday, 15 September, she wanted the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, to face the international criminal court over war crimes in Ukraine.
«That Putin must lose this war and must face up to his actions, that is important to me,» EU president told the TV channel of German news outlet Bild.
Vladimir Putin thanked the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, for his «balanced» approach to the Ukraine crisis.
During the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan on Thursday, 15 September, Putin told his Chinese counterpart: «We understand your questions and your concerns in this regard, and we certainly will offer a detailed explanation of our stand on this issue during today’s meeting, even though we already talked about it earlier.»
According to a readout from the meeting provided by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China would «work with Russia to extend strong mutual support on issues concerning each other’s core interests» and «play a leading role in injecting stability and positive energy into a world of change and disorder,».
International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) 35–nation board of governors passed a resolution demanding Russia end its occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine, Reuters reports.
The issued resolution is the second on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine passed by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board.