Witness: How russian soldiers tortured and killed residents of Staryi Bykiv

Inscription: “Children. Please do not shoot”

In the Ukrainian village of Staryi Bykiv in the Bobrovytsia district of Chernihiv region, russian soldiers
stayed for more than a month. When they entered the village in a convoy, all the men who were on the street were caught and taken to a dormitory near the monument to soldiers who died in the war in Afghanistan in 1979-1989.

There they were tortured for several days and then killed. For nine days, the relatives, mostly mothers, were not allowed to bury the dead by russian soldiers. Not only Ukrainians were treated this way. The russian invaders burned the corpses of their soldiers in a stable. Local residents told Active Citizens
journalists about what the village has experienced since the first days of the occupation.

«They (russian soldiers – ed.) almost never came to the village. They went through the houses, told us not to go out and not to get out. They were sitting where the stables used to be. They had an infirmary there, they kept the dead and wounded there», – said one resident.

«Did they then take their fallen with them?» – the journalist asked a clarifying question.

«No. They burned them here. In Bukiv, they burned in the crematorium. I won`t tell you exactly how many they burned there. But they burned their bodies there. People said that it stank of burnt meat. Our fellow villagers were killed here a total of six people. Olha’s two boys were killed. She has three sons, two were killed. Young men… For no reason. They just grabbed them and that was it… Mothers begged them to give them back. No one gave them back. They also mocked them so much that it was horrible. They broke their skulls, stuck knives in their groins and turned these knives around… It was terrible… Another
woman lost her only son. He was 30 years old. He was killed for no reason. They went outside to smoke and they were taken away. She begged, she was on her knees. She was sitting near the monument to the dead «Afghans» as they were entering the village. And there were guys being tortured nearby. They were screaming and then quieted down. She realized that they hadalready been killed. And then for 10 more days we were not given a chance to bury them. One woman was run over by a APC as she was driving to
Chystopillia, just as you turn left to Kyiv. She was lying there for a long time, too, and they didn’t let us bury her», – said a resident of Staryi Bykiv six months after the village was deoccupied.

Another woman expanded on this story when driving journalists to a family that had lost its only son. A 75-year-old grandfather was left without help, as his son had gone on a bicycle to get medicine for his sick father on that terrible day. The young man did not know that Russian tanks were around the corner. And he never returned to his father.

«They launched a drone (russian soldiers when they entered the village – Ed.) They saw who was walking
where, who was watching where. They conducted reconnaissance. We were standing there looking, and my husband said: «Let’s go under cover, because the drone is buzzing». No one understood what it was, because we were regular people. And then we found out that there was a sniper there too. At first, it was not russians whocame in. They spoke differently from us and shouted differently from us.

They had narrow eyes. When our investigators arrived (after the village was liberated from the occupiers – Ed.), people told them that it was those who spoke not like us (not in russian – Ed.) who tortured. Those who were sitting near the monument when their boys were being tortured told them. The villagers were told: «Go home, we will interrogate them and then let them go». They did, and then the boys were
killed», – recalled another resident of Stary Bykiv.

Residents of Staryi Bykiv said that when they buried the killed boys, it was clear that their ribs were broken and one of them had his throat cut. Russian soldiers took people even from their homes – these people were not soldiers of the Ukrainian army and did not attack the occupiers.

«They were taken right out of the house. Then everyone from two streets were also taken. Two guys were taken, they looked out. They were taken because a drone saw them. They were running and were also taken away. Everyone were taken to the outskirts ofthe village to a bus stop. They were tortured there and then taken to the bathhouse (where the captives were killed – ed.)»? – said a resident of Stary
Bykiv.

As of February 22, 2023, since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, investigators of
the National Police of Ukraine have opened 64,331 criminal proceedings on the facts of crimes committed on the territory of Ukraine by members of the armed forces of the russian federation and their accomplices.

Of these:

• 52 339 – under the article «Violation of the laws and customs of war»;
• 9 251 – under the article «Encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine»;
• 2 524 – under the article «Collaboration activities» and others.

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