The chairman of the Russian metals firm Rusal has called for an impartial investigation into the killing of civilians in Bucha.
What happened? Shocking images of the carnage in Bucha were captured by Agence France-Presse on Saturday, the same day Ukraine declared the town liberated from Russian troops. Accounts of alleged Russian atrocities are emerging as its forces retreat from areas near Kyiv following a failed bid to encircle the capital.
The town of Bucha has endured five weeks of near-constant firefights. Now officials and human rights groups are blaming the civilian deaths on the departed Russian forces.
“Reports from the Ukrainian city of Bucha shocked us. We believe that this crime should be thoroughly investigated. We support an objective and impartial investigation of this crime and call for severe punishment for the perpetrators. No matter how hard it may seem in the context of ongoing information war,” Rusal Chairman Bernard Zonneveld said in a statement earlier this week.
Zonneveld’s statement did not address who may be responsible for the atrocities but went on to say that “such incidents make this terrible tragedy all the more traumatic.”
“We all wish an early end to this fratricidal conflict, which destroys lives, families and entire cities. And we want those responsible for such crimes to be punished appropriately,” the statement reads.
Zonneveld, a Dutch citizen, added that Rusal is calling for an early peaceful resolution of this conflict “to preserve priceless human lives and return to normalcy.”
The founder of Rusal, Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska, who has called for peace in the past, said on Telegram last week that the war is “madness” and could have already been resolved through negotiations.