18 Butcha massacre
How can you commit crimes in front of everyone? Many crimes? And shamelessly lie that you didn’t do it? If you are Russia. In Butcha.
- it was staged
- it didn’t happen
- it wasn’t us (Russia)
- it was Ukraine
- they deserved it
Russsia committed severe atrocities
To hide its acts of terror and the killing of civilians, Russia claims that it is the Ukrainian army that is destroying the civilian population. One glaring instance of Russia deflecting blame onto Ukraine involves the heinous acts committed by Russian soldiers in Bucha. On April 3, the Russian Ministry of Defense published a statement,1 later republished by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs,2 that claimed unequivocally that “the photos and video footage from Bucha are another hoax, a staged production and provocation by the Kiev regime for the Western media,”3 using the Russian spelling for the Ukrainian capital.
The Russian Defence Ministry denies accusations of Kiev regime of allegedly killing civilians in Bucha, Kiev Region. (2022, April 3). Telegram. Retrieved May 1, 2024, from https://t.me/MFARussia/12230↩︎
Russian Defence Ministry denies accusations of Kiev regime of allegedly killing civilians in Bucha, Kiev Region. (2022, April 3). Facebook. Retrieved May 1, 2024, from https://www.facebook.com/mod.mil.rus/posts/3197015560541178↩︎
Higgins, E. (2022, April 4). Russia’s Bucha ‘Facts’ Versus the Evidence. Bellingcat. Retrieved May 1, 2024, from https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2022/04/04/russias-bucha-facts-versus-the-evidence/↩︎
Caught on Camera, Traced by Phone: The Russian Military Unit That Killed Dozens in Bucha. (2022, December 22). The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2024, from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/22/video/russia-ukraine-bucha-massacre-takeaways.html↩︎
Ukraine: Apparent War Crimes in Russia-Controlled Areas. (2022, April 3). Human Rights Watch. Retrieved May 1, 2024, from https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/03/ukraine-apparent-war-crimes-russia-controlled-areas↩︎