Returning to our lead story
tonight, Russian forces have
killed civilians across Ukraine,
sparking mobile outrage and
accusations that Russia is
committing war crimes, even
genocide.
The barbarity is evident in the
key suburb of bucha, which was
liberated three weeks ago.
Just a warning, some images in
this report are disturbing.
>> The cemetery in bucha.
Bodies are brought here one
after the other.
Some dug out of a mass grave to
be buried a second time.
Others collected from the street
found where they lay after
Russian forces retreated from
this area at the end of March.
So far, 350 eight bodies, mostly
civilian, have recovered in this
small suburb of the capital
Kyiv, which has been -- become
synonymous with the Russian
campaign.
>> Damn the occupants.
May every single one of them
die.
Make their disgusting country
cease to exist.
Animals.
>> He had only one day left
until his 57th birthday and the
liberation of bucha.
>> The last time she saw him, he
dug Tito's out of his garden and
took them to his neighbors, a
final act of kindness that would
result in his brutal murder.
>> They question him about
something.
Then they led him away to an
unknown location.
No one saw him after that.
They smashed his head with a
heavy, blunt object.
>> Just about a mile away, next
to a cathedral, Ukrainian
investigators continue to
painstakingly exhume the mass
burial site that was created by
locals who did what they could
to collect bodies from the
streets while the Russians were
still here.
Each one is backed before being
taken to a morgue for
identification to establish
cause of death.
Close to 120 work temporarily
interred here.
The mayor said one of five
citizens who remained in the
city died during the Russian
occupation of the town.
The city's chief prosecutor told
us investigators want to
establish the names of specific
soldiers who were behind the
killings and find out who gave
the orders to target civilians.
>> The evidence shows that
people were simply shot for
being local residents and
Ukrainians.
The Russian military did not
care if they spoke in Russian or
Ukrainian.
Russian troops and their armored
personnel carrier shot up a
vehicle with a mother and two
children while they were trying
to escape.
The car caught on fire, and the
mother and two children were
burned.
We are gathering evidence that
points to genocide, but for the
moment, I can say confidently
that the Russian troops
specifically located in bucha
were specifically killing local
residents.
>> As far as I'm aware, what
they want to achieve is to make
sure that the links, if they
exist, are drawn right up to the
top.
Leadership and political
leadership of Russia, I.e. Putin
, so what is needed to -- what
is needed is to investigate what
is happening on the ground but
also to show the links upwards.
>> That's because genocide,
which is often thought of as a
crime of mass killing, is
actually defined by proving the
intent to destroy a group such
as a nation or ethnicity.
>> I have seen massive attacks
on civilians, which, according
to witnesses, is also matched by
massive attacks on civilians in
the 1970's.
Much of that does not seem to be
connected to military targets.
I have seen basements which
appear to show signs of people
being detained and tortured
there.
I have seen mass graves, which
seem to suggest that scores, if
not hundreds of civilians have
been killed and buried, again
without any of the us military
connection.
These speak to me as patterns
which he ordinarily would see in
crimes against humanity.
I think in bucha, what we see is
even a movement from crimes
against humanity to perhaps
genocide.
>> A car, and armored vehicle,
and to the people out of the
brush, civilians.
>> Unverified radio intercepts
of Russian troops could be an
early indicator that orders were
given to target civilians.
>> [Beep] Lay waste to them all,
for [bep] Sake.
>> If there are civilians, waste
them all.
Did you get that?
>> Copy.
>> Various law enforcement
agencies are working to collect
evidence, telephone
communications confirming
everything.
All the Taft calls using other
investigative methods like
evidence the orders were given.
What kind of things were they
saying?
>> Regarding the killing of
civilians, everyone should
everything.
Kill everyone you see.
Many of the shot up cars have
signs that say "Children" on
them.
This did not seem to stop the
Russian soldiers.
>> Investigators have also
started to piece together a
picture of which Russian units
were occupation -- were
operating in the area.
They are the 64th motorized
rifles from Russia's far east.
The 155th Marines brigade and a
yet unidentified unit of
Russia's National Guard.
Aside from the widespread and
seemingly random killings of
civilians in bucha, "Newshour"
has also witnessed the targeting
of military -- men of military
age for questioning and
execution.
Volunteers backed bodies of a
group of eight men at an
apparent kill site behind an
office building.
>> We have come back here
because we were quite rushed
when we arrived on the first
day, and we want to see if there
are any clues as to who the
Russians were who were using
this building as their base to
see if we can try to link them
to these killings.
>> Two of the bodies have their
hands tied behind their backs,
indicating they were restrained
prior to their deaths.
All of the men were shot
directly in the head or chest,
suggesting execution.
Other journalists discovered
similar sites in other parts of
the city.
We spoke with a resident who
lives in a house across the
street.
He did not want us to use his
last name.
>> I saw two bodies.
>> He told us Russian soldiers
rounded up over 100 residents
from around the neighborhood and
forced them to stand for hours
in front of the building before
ordering them into a bomb
shelter below.
Some were separated.
>> There were three people
dressed down to their pants in
front of the front door, closer
to the road.
Their torsos work bear and they
were on their knees.
I was told they were shot to
death on March 6.
>> It seems only a matter of
time before suspects in the war
crimes investigation are named,
but if justice is ultimately
served to the hundreds of
victims and their families will
depend on the course of the war
in Ukraine, which is far from
over.
>> "The newshour's" coverage of
the war in Ukraine is supported
in partnership with the policy