Russia has committed 400 war crimes – Zelensky

Kherson – President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday the Ukrainian forces that retook the city of Kherson found evidence of new war crimes by Russian occupiers.

“The Russian army left behind the same atrocities as in other regions of our country,” he said in a nightly address.

“Investigators have already documented more than 400 war crimes,” the Ukrainian leader said, without clearly specifying the area in which they were found.

“The bodies of the killed are being found, both civilians and military. We will find and bring to justice every murderer,” he said.

Ukrainians in the liberated city have expressed a deep sense of relief over the end of months of occupation, after Russian forces pulled out on Friday.

But, like Zelensky, they said the Russians had left a trail of destruction, laying mines and going on a looting spree – even stealing animals from a zoo – before their withdrawal. “God will punish them. All of them. For everything they did,” said Svitlana Vilna, 47.

Ruined buildings and destroyed military vehicles could be seen at the entrance to the strategic Black Sea port city, where battles raged just days ago.

A smell of burning wood wafted through the air. “I ask you not to forget that the situation in the Kherson region is still very dangerous,” Zelensky said.

He said a Ukrainian sapper was killed while removing a mine, while four others were injured.

Zelensky said workers were moving to quickly restore critical infrastructure destroyed by the Russians, including water, electricity, internet and television links, as well as transport and postal services.

Kherson was one of four regions in Ukraine that Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed to have annexed in September.

On Sunday, residents queued to get food, and many adults and children walked around wrapped in Ukrainian flags.

Some gathered in the city’s main square, mostly to use Starlink satellite internet and connect with relatives. “I need to get in touch with my family,” said Klavdia Mych, a retired teacher.

“We have been without water for a week,” the 69 year old added. “And they say everything is mined. It is very scary.”

Viktoria Dybovska, a 30-yearold sales clerk, said the Russians “took everything” with them. “They cleared out the stores,” she added.

Oleksandr Todorchuk, founder of the organisation UAnimals, said Russian troops had taken most of the local zoo’s animals to Crimea.

“From llamas and wolves to donkeys and squirrels,” he said on Facebook.

The city of Kherson was the first major urban hub to fall after Russia invaded in February.

On Saturday, in the village of Pravdyne, outside Kherson, returning locals embraced their neighbours, with some unable to hold back tears.