Some mention 40 dead, others like Volodymyr Zelensky deplore more than 50. Anyway, it's one more tragedy in this war that has lasted for more than 160 days.
The UN secretary-general will launch a fact-finding mission to uncover the 'truth' about the explosions last week at Olenivka prison in a pro-Russian separatist area in eastern Ukraine, it said. -he announced this Wednesday, responding to requests from kyiv and Moscow.
“I decided (…) to launch a fact-finding mission” after having “received the requests from the Russian Federation and Ukraine”, said Antonio Guterres during a press conference, recalling that he did not have the authority to conduct "criminal investigations".
“The terms of reference for this fact-finding mission are being prepared,” he added, hoping to be able to find an agreement with Russia and Ukraine on these terms.
“We hope to obtain all the access facilities from both parties and to obtain the data necessary to establish the truth about what happened,” he added, specifying that he was looking for the suitable, “independent and competent” people to integrate this mission.
Both sides accuse each other
Last week, explosions in Olenivka prison, in a pro-Russian separatist area in eastern Ukraine and where Ukrainian soldiers taken prisoner in Mariupol were held, left dozens dead, according to the Russian army .
The Russian Investigative Committee accused the Ukrainian forces of having "fired on the prison where the members of the Azov battalion are being held, using American projectiles of the Himars system".
Russian public television broadcast images presented as those of charred barracks and destroyed metal bed frames.
She showed blurry images of what appear to be human bodies.
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Moscow accuses kyiv of having bombarded this prison camp, which the Ukrainian authorities refute, who affirm on the contrary that these prisoners were massacred by Russian forces.
The Ukrainian general staff considered that it was thus a question of “accusing Ukraine of having committed war crimes” and of “camouflaging the torture of prisoners and the executions” which were “perpetrated” there. .
