Russia appears to have used banned cluster munitions to indiscriminately shell civilian areas in Ukraine’s east that had stood up to Vladimir Putin’s invasion in what would constitute a war crime.
Kharkiv, which has witnessed some of the heaviest fighting of the war so far, was hit by rockets fired from Russian positions on Monday – with video showing a shopping center in the Serpnia area blanketed by explosions. A military source told MailOnline that the videos showed ‘cluster’ munitions had been used.
‘The BM-21 Grad is a multiple launch rocket system used for ‘area denial’, dropping cluster bombs on a concentrated area,’ the expert said. ‘It’s mainly used on enemy troops before an offensive. Used against civilians, it’s not only a war crime but has only one purpose – to spread terror and alarm among the civilian population.’
Graphic images and video revealed streets littered with the bodies of dead and badly wounded civilians, with other images showing spent BM-21 Grad rocket cartridges laying in the streets and having fallen through apartment roofs. “A missile targeting the central square of a city is open, undisguised terrorism,” Mr. Zelensky said early Tuesday.
“It’s terrorism that aims to break us, to break our resistance.” In an emotional video address to the European Parliament later Tuesday, Mr. Zelensky said Ukrainians are dying in a struggle for the country’s survival. “We are giving our lives for the right to be equal,” he said, looking unshaven and wearing a green army T-shirt.
“Prove that you are with us and will not let us go.” He said two cruise missiles had struck Kharkiv, while numerous children had died in other Russian attacks. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, launched last week by President Vladimir Putin with the aim of overthrowing the country’s elected government and ending its alignment with the West, has made slower progress than most military analysts had expected, as Russian forces struggle with fierce Ukrainian resistance and logistical problems.
