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Newly released footage has shown the moment three kneeling and surrendering Ukrainian paratroopers were shot dead by Russian forces.
The drone video is under investigation as new war crime charges were recently brought against Vladimir Putin’s troops.
In the video, Ukrainian troops appear to be kneeling with their hands behind their heads in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region.
As the Russian soldier fires his weapon, smoke is seen, and the men who were kneeling collapsed.
In Ukraine, the incident has been condemned as showing how Putin’s forces ‘are simply not human’.
The moment, filmed near the frontline village of Robotyne, has prompted a response from the General Prosecutor’s Office in Kyiv.
The shocking moment was caught on aerial footage (Picture: East2West News)
The men collapsed after the horrific attack (Picture: East2West News)
The Ukrainian army is preparing for a heavy winter (Picture: Reuters)
A statement from the General Prosecutor’s Office in Kyiv said: ‘The Russian army captured three Ukrainian defenders during a combat clash near the village of Robotyne, Zaporizhzhia region.
‘An hour later, in violation of Article 3 of the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War, the occupiers shot them.’
The SBU, Ukraine’s intelligence service, is investigating the matter, which they refer to as another ‘gross violation of international humanitarian law regarding the treatment of prisoners of war by the aggressor country’.
The video will need to undergo checks and verification before it can be used as evidence of a war crime, but if proven, the shooting would be a violation of the rules of conflict.
Robotyne has seen heavy fighting in recent months (Picture: Reuters)
The Ukrainian frontlines have fortified ahead of a tough winter (Picture: Reuters)
Respected Ukrainian journalist Andriy Tsaplienko, of TSN TV channel said: ‘Russian occupiers shot captured paratroopers on one of the areas of the frontline. This video will become another document at the international tribunal.
‘It shows how three paratroopers were brought to their knees and shot from a distance of a few metres.
‘The execution of the prisoners is watched by a person in uniform who stands behind them, probably a Russian soldier who commands the execution.
‘The video taken by the drone is a confirmation that the occupiers are simply not humans.’
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Earlier this month, another video emerged of Russian soldiers allegedly executing Ukrainian soldiers.
The Ukrainian military said advancing Russian forces began shooting the unarmed soldiers close to the town of Avdiivka, in eastern Ukraine.
Filmed from above, what appears to be three Russian soldiers aim their weapons at the entrance of a bunker.
Moments later, two Ukrainian soldiers emerge, taking up a position of surrender, when suddenly the Russian soldiers shoot them both dead.
It is a war crime to kill or wound a fighter who has given up their weapons and surrendered.
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