The Ukrainian army accuses Russian forces of using a group of civilians, including women and a child, as human shields near the city of Kupiansk, in the Kharkov region, after which they allegedly opened fire on them. According to the 13th Corps “Khartia”, images captured by a reconnaissance drone show that there were casualties as a result of the attack.
Kyiv claims that the shots came from the eastern bank of the Oskil River, where Russian troops are positioned, and announces that it will submit materials for an investigation into possible war crimes. The claims could not be independently verified by the Kyiv Independent publication.
According to the 13th “Khartia” Corps of Ukraine, the group was made up of two women, a child, and several men, who were being led towards the Shebelinka-Ostrogozhsk gas pipeline. As they moved, the civilians were repeatedly targeted by mortar and artillery fire. Images captured by the drones of Ukrainian reconnaissance units indicate that there were casualties among the civilians as a result of the attack, the “Khartia” Corps stated, adding that Ukrainian troops did not open fire on the group.
Based on the impact patterns, the attack would have originated from the eastern bank of the Oskil river, where Russian forces are positioned, the Ukrainian army corps specified. “Khartia” labeled the attack as a “deliberate provocation” and warned that Russian media might use the images of the incident to falsely accuse Ukraine of attacking civilians. The army corps announced that it will hand over the materials to be used in an investigation into possible war crimes.
“Civilians are used as human shields by the Russians, and then become the target of their disinformation campaigns,” conveyed the “Khartia” Corps.
Separately, the Joint Forces Operation of Ukraine announced, also on October 13, that Russian forces had attacked a column of civilians leaving Kupiansk as part of an operation described as a forced evacuation. The Ukrainian army specified that the number of victims has not yet been established.
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