Russian soldiers.Photo: EyePress News/Shutterstock
New evidence suggests Russian soldiers have been allegedly planning to rape some of the women they encounter while deployed in theongoing invasion of Ukraine.
“You go there, rape Ukrainian women and don’t tell me anything. Understood?” the woman tells her husband in the intercepted audio,according to Insider, citing the published audio.
RFE/RL reported that the soldier admitted to them that he is in Sevastopol, a port in Crimea that serves as a base for Russia’s Black Sea fleet, and also confirmed his identity — but denied he was the man on the call. However, RFE/RL reported that his and his wife’s voices both match the audio.
The man has not been accused of raping anyone and no charges have been filed against him or his wife, according to the report, which also noted that the couple, who are heard laughing on the call, could be joking.
Nonetheless, the audio is emerging at the same time women and girls in Ukraine are coming forward in growing numbers to tell horrific stories of soldiers using sexual assault as a tactic of tyranny in the Russian invasion, which began more than six weeks ago.
SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty Images
“We are increasingly hearing of rape and sexual violence,” Sima Bahous, the executive director for U.N. Women, reportedly told the U.N. Security Council during a briefing last week. “The combination of mass displacement with the large presence of conscripts and mercenaries, and the brutality displayed against Ukrainian civilians, has raised all red flags.”
Russian officials deny allegations of its soldiers engaging in sexual violence against women and children in Ukraine.
“No convincing evidence has been presented for any of these crimes, but it’s understandable that you have trampled the presumption of innocence a long time ago,” deputy U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy reportedly said during the briefing.
Mariupol, Ukraine, in the wake of an attack during the Russian invasion.EyePress News/Shutterstock
Russia’sattack on Ukrainecontinues after their forces launched a large-scale invasion on Feb. 24 — the first major land conflict in Europe in decades.
More than 4.5 million have fled the country as refugees — and half are children,according to the United Nations. Millions more have been displaced inside Ukraine.
With NATO forces amassed in the region, various countries are offering aid or military support to the resistance. Zelenskyy has called for peace talks — so far unsuccessful — while urging his country to fight back.
Putin insists Ukraine has historic ties to Russia and he is acting in the best security interests of his country. Zelenskyy vowed not to bend.
“Nobody is going to break us, we’re strong, we’re Ukrainians,“he told the European Unionin a speech in the early days of the fighting, adding, “Life will win over death. And light will win over darkness.”
source: people.com
