The Ukrainian leader then criticized the body, asking representatives without question: “Where is the security that the Security Council needs to guarantee? It does not exist, although there is a Security Council.” Zelensky added: “It is clear that the basic institution of the world designed to combat aggression and ensure peace cannot function effectively. “Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to remind you of Article 1, Chapter 1 of the Charter of the United Nations. What is the purpose of our organization? Its purpose is to maintain and ensure that peace is maintained. And now the UN Charter is they are literally violated starting with Article 1. So what is the meaning of all the other articles? ”he asked. At least 1,480 civilians have been killed and at least 2,195 wounded in Ukraine between the start of the Russian invasion on February 24 and April 4, a UN official told the meeting, citing figures from the UN High Commissioner for Humanity. Rights (OHCHR). The latest figures for the number of Ukrainian civilians in the conflict had “more than doubled” since the latest update to the UN Security Council on 17 March. In Bucha, corpses strewn on the streets and in basements were found by human rights groups and documented by independent journalists. Satellite images show that some bodies have been there since at least March 18. In his condemnation speech, Zelensky said that “there is not a single crime” that the Russians “would not commit”, claiming that the Russian troops “deliberately searched and killed anyone who served our country.” “They shot and killed women outside their homes when they were just trying to call someone … They killed entire families, adults and children and tried to burn the bodies,” Zelensky said. “I address you on behalf of the people who honor the memory of the dead every day and the memory of the civilians who died, who were shot and killed in the back of the head after being tortured,” he told SAIE. . “Some of them were shot in the streets. Others were thrown into wells, so they died there suffering. They were killed in their apartments, in their homes, they were blown up by grenades. “Women were raped and killed in front of their children. “Their language came out only because the attacker did not hear what they wanted to hear from them.” Zelensky also warned that the atrocities found in Bucha would be repeated in other cities across Ukraine. Calling for accountability, he called for the Russians to be brought to justice for giving “criminal orders” and “executing them by killing our people”, similar to the Nuremberg trials that took place after World War II, when the Nazis were tried.

UN: Civilians targeted

Separately, the United Nations said on Tuesday that the shocking images from Bucharest showed “all the signs” that civilians were “immediately targeted and killed immediately.”
In a virtual press release, OHCHR spokeswoman Liz Throssell said the reports from Bucha and other areas were “very worrying developments”.
He specifically referred to “disturbing” images of people with their hands tied behind their backs and partially naked women whose bodies have been burned as further evidence of direct targeting.
“We talked about war crimes in the context of bombings, bombings and artillery attacks. Now they need to be investigated. But you could argue that there was a military context, for example, the bombing of a building. “he was on the street with a bullet in the head or his bodies were burning,” Throssell continued. As OHCHR was trying to gain access to Bucha, it had no “accurate information” to share about the situation on the ground. Throssell also paid tribute to the “critical role” that journalists play in documenting these scenes, citing the “multiple groups” involved in “reporting, analyzing and uploading videos.”

Russia’s response

Russia has repeatedly denied the alleged atrocities, despite growing evidence to the contrary. Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, responded to Zelensky’s remarks, calling the allegations against the Russian military “baseless.”
“We bring to your attention the baseless accusations against the Russian army, which are not confirmed by any eyewitnesses,” Nebenzia said in translated statements. The ambassador recalled Zelensky’s election to the Ukrainian presidency in 2019, saying that hopes that Zelensky would end the fighting in the Donbass region of Ukraine “failed to materialize.” Nebenzia also reiterated claims in the past that “a huge amount of lies about Russian soldiers and soldiers” continues to multiply. Addressing Zelensky directly, Nebenzia concluded his remarks by arguing that Russia “came to … Ukraine” to bring peace, not to “conquer territories.” Nebenzia’s words echoed those of Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peshkov earlier in the day, who described the allegations as “baseless, but a well-organized tragic show” and a “forgery to try to humiliate the Russian army.” CNN’s Niamh Kennedy, Laura Ly and Anna Chernova contributed to this report.