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ZDVYZHIVKA, Ukraine (AP) — The carnage near by Russian soldiers connected the roadworthy to Kyiv wasn’t random. It was strategical brutality, perpetrated successful areas that were nether choky Russian power wherever subject officers — including 1 of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s apical generals accused of warfare crimes successful Syria — were present, an investigation by The Associated Press and the PBS bid “Frontline” found.
Troops moving down from Belarus toward Kyiv had been ordered to artifact and destruct “nationalist resistance,” according to the Royal United Services Institute, a London deliberation vessel that has reviewed copies of Russia’s conflict plans. Soldiers utilized lists compiled by Russian quality and conducted “zachistki” — cleansing operations — sweeping neighborhoods to place and neutralize anyone who mightiness airs a threat.
The antheral successful complaint of this beforehand of the warfare was Col. Gen. Alexander Chaiko, who earned a planetary estimation for brutality arsenic person of Russia’s forces successful Syria.
“Those orders were written astatine Chaiko’s level. So helium would person seen them and signed up for them,” said Jack Watling, a elder probe chap astatine RUSI who shared the conflict plans with the AP.
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This communicative is portion of an AP/FRONTLINE probe that includes the War Crimes Watch Ukraine interactive acquisition and the documentary “Putin’s Attack connected Ukraine: Documenting War Crimes,” connected PBS.
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While determination is thing needfully amerciable astir that order, it was often implemented with flagrant disregard for the laws of warfare arsenic Russian troops seized territories crossed Ukraine.
Witnesses and survivors successful Bucha, arsenic good arsenic Ozera, Babyntsi and Zdvyzhivka — each places nether Chaiko’s bid — told the AP and “Frontline” that Russian soldiers tortured and killed radical connected the slightest suspicion they mightiness beryllium helping the Ukrainian military. Sweeps intensified aft Russian positions were deed with precision, interviews and video show, and soldiers, successful intercepted telephone calls obtained by the AP, told their loved ones that they’d been ordered to instrumentality a no-mercy attack to suspected informants.
Ukraine has indicted Chaiko for the wide transgression of aggression — that is waging an amerciable warfare connected their territory. But it volition instrumentality much circumstantial grounds to onshore him successful planetary court. Prosecutors would person to amusement that helium played a cardinal relation successful implementing amerciable policies of the Russian Federation oregon should person known what his troops were doing and was successful a presumption to stop, oregon punish, their behavior.
For now, Chaiko — a antheral implicated successful immoderate of the worst atrocities successful some Syria and Ukraine — is inactive starring troops, erstwhile again arsenic commandant of Russia’s forces successful Syria.
Here are 4 takeaways from the investigation:
MOM, I AM KILLING CIVILIANS
Russian soldiers openly discussed atrocities against civilians during telephone calls with their mothers, wives and friends that the Ukrainian authorities intercepted adjacent Kyiv.
On March 21, a worker named Vadim told his mother: “We person the bid to instrumentality phones from everyone and those who defy — successful abbreviated — to hellhole with the f------.”
“We person the order: It does not substance whether they’re civilians oregon not. Kill everyone.”
The slightest question of a curtain successful a model — a imaginable motion of a spotter oregon a gunman — justified slamming an flat artifact with lethal artillery. Ukrainians who confessed to passing on Russian unit coordinates were summarily executed, including teenagers, soldiers said.
“We person the bid not to instrumentality prisoners of warfare but to sprout them each dormant directly,” a worker nicknamed Lyonya said successful a March 14 telephone call.
“There was a boy, 18 years old, taken prisoner. First, they changeable done his limb with a instrumentality gun, past helium got his ears chopped off. He admitted to everything and was changeable dead,” Lyonya told his mom. “We bash not instrumentality prisoners. Meaning, we don’t permission anyone alive.”
The Dossier Center, a London-based investigative radical funded by Russian absorption fig Mikhail Khodorkovsky, verified the individuality of the soldiers who made those calls.
IN CHARGE OF THE CARNAGE IN BUCHA
Ukrainian prosecutors accidental that a portion nether Chaiko’s bid — the 76th Guards Airborne Assault Division — participated successful a lethal cleansing cognition connected March 4 on Yablunska street, the deadliest roadworthy successful occupied Bucha and the tract of an important Russian bid center.
In June, the U.S. State Department sanctioned the part and its 234th Guards Airborne Assault Regiment, arsenic good arsenic the 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, for atrocities successful Bucha.
Those units were each nether the eventual bid of Chaiko during the aboriginal weeks of the invasion, Ukrainian authorities told AP.
NOT THE WORK OF ROGUE SOLDIERS
Russians transformed the colony of Zdvyzhivka, an hr northbound of Kyiv, into a large guardant operating basal for their battle connected the capital. From March 20 to March 31, Chaiko commanded the battle connected Kyiv from this village. He was spotted astir a kilometer (less than a mile) down a tightly controlled roadworthy astir the aforesaid clip arsenic 5 men were tortured and killed successful the plot of a location frequented by Russian officers. The transport of tied-up civilians to that location happened much than once, successful wide daylight, wrong the information structures acceptable up by the occupying forces, eyewitnesses said.
KEEPING THE BOSS HAPPY
There’s nary motion Chaiko disapproved of what his troops were doing. Russia’s Ministry of Defense released a video of the wide pinning medals connected soldiers successful Ukraine. “All units, each divisions are acting the mode they were taught,” helium said successful the March 24 video. “They are doing everything right. I americium arrogant of them.”
There is besides nary motion Moscow has sanctioned Chaiko for the precise nationalist atrocities committed connected his watch. Instead, Putin praised Chaiko for his actions successful Syria, awarding him the rubric “Hero of Russia” successful 2020 and promoting him to colonel wide successful June 2021.
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“Frontline” producers Tom Jennings and Annie Wong, co-producer Taras Lazer and AP reporters James LaPorta, Oleksandr Stashevskyi, Richard Lardner, Janine Graham and Solomiia Hera contributed to this report.
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To interaction AP’s investigations team, email investigative@ap.org
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