1706336278
If the information that there were Ukrainian prisoners of war on the plane is confirmed, it would be a “serious violation of international humanitarian law by Russia,” said Khayovishina. It is “the first time that Russia has used a human shield in the air” to cover weapons transport, she emphasized.
Russia called an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on the IL-76 accident. According to the German news agency DPA, representatives of Western countries emphasized at the meeting that the plane crash would never have happened if Russia had not started a war of aggression against Ukraine.
“Russia has repeatedly sought to shift responsibility for the tragedies of this senseless and forced war onto others, as if it were the victim rather than the aggressor,” said Robert Wood, the U.S. deputy ambassador to the United Nations.
Photo: Russian investigators have opened a terrorism investigation into the crash of the “IL-76”.
An IL-76 military transport aircraft reportedly crashed in Korocha district of Russia’s Belgorod region on Wednesday. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the plane was shot down by Ukrainian forces and had 65 Ukrainian military personnel on board for replacement, six crew members and three Russian soldiers. Everyone died.
There is still no independent information about what this plane was carrying.
The Main Intelligence Department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine announced on Wednesday that there is still no reliable information about which people and how many were on this plane.
The intelligence agency said that an exchange of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war was planned for Wednesday, but it did not take place, adding that Ukraine, for its part, fulfilled all agreements in preparation for the exchange. The captured Russian soldiers were brought to the agreed exchange time, where they were safe.
#United #Nations #unable #determine #Ukrainian #prisoners #war #plane