KIEV — Russian troops have again been executing Ukrainian prisoners of war, Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets posted on Telegram.
A video showed five Ukrainian prisoners being gunned down by Russians after they were captured, he said.
"Russian war criminals who shoot Ukrainian prisoners of war must be brought before an international tribunal and receive the harshest punishment that the law provides for," Lubinets posted.
Killing prisoners of war is a war crime, and repeated allegations have been made against Russian forces.
In an interview conducted in mid-December, Lubinets put the number of confirmed cases since the start of the war at 177, with the number rising rapidly.
There had been 109 executions this year alone, the ombudsman said.
Putin vows revenge for Kazan attack
Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened Kiev with retaliation following Saturday's drone attack on the Russian city of Kazan on the Volga.
"Whoever tries to destroy something here will be faced with a multiple of the destruction on their territory and will come to regret what they have attempted in our country," the Kremlin chief said during a televised video conference.
On Saturday morning, six Ukrainian drones hit residential buildings in Kazan and a seventh struck an industrial facility. No injuries from the attack were officially reported, while media reports indicated that three people suffered cuts from shattered window glass.
Kazan is located more than 1,000 kilometres from the Ukrainian border. Although Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the attack, it is seen as a response to a Russian missile strike against Kiev.
Drone sets fire to Russian fuel depot
A fuel depot in the western Russian region of Oryol caught fire after a Ukrainian drone attack, regional governor Andrey Klychkov posted on the Telegram platform early Sunday.
"Thanks to quick reactions, it was luckily possible to prevent further consequences of the attack - the fire was quickly localised and has now been fully extinguished," Klychkov posted. He said there were no casualties or serious damage.
According to Klychkov, Russian air defence shot down around 20 drones that were primarily targeting fuel and energy supply facilities.
The Russian Ministry of Defence reported the downing of an overall 42 drones in the regions of Oryol, Rostov, Bryansk, Kursk and Krasnodar. The information cannot be independently verified.
The fuel depot near the village of Stalnoi Kon had been attacked a week ago. Ukraine's military justified the attack by stating that the reservoirs serve the Russian army. The depot also supplies the Druzhba oil pipeline to Europe, however.
©2024 dpa GmbH. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
