BERLIN – Germany’s foreign intelligence service says it has intercepted radio communications in which Russian soldiers are discussing indiscriminate killings in Ukraine.
In two separate reports, Russian soldiers described questioning Ukrainian and civilian soldiers and then shooting them, according to an intelligence official familiar with the findings, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
The findings, first reported by the German magazine Der Spiegel and confirmed by three people familiar with the information, further undermine Russia’s denials of involvement in the massacre. Russia has argued differently that atrocities are committed only after its troops leave occupied territories or that scenes of civilian massacres are “staged”.
More horrific scenes emerge from Bucha, Ukraine, where local authorities are beginning to search hundreds of bodies. (Video: Joyce Co., Jorge Ribas / Washington Post, photo: The Washington Post)
Images of Bucha, a suburb of the Ukrainian capital, have become symbols of war atrocities and sparked calls for an investigation into possible war crimes. One man said radio communications were likely to give a better idea of alleged atrocities in other cities north of Kyiv that were held by Russian troops.
In Bucha, the scale of Russian barbarism comes into focus
Germany has satellite images showing Russia’s involvement in the killing of civilians in Bucha, an intelligence official said, but radio broadcasts were not related. The Foreign Intelligence Agency, known as the BND, may be able to match intelligence signals to videos and satellite imagery to make links to specific killings, two people said.
These people also said that the radio trafficking suggested that members of the Wagner group, a private military unit with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies, had played a role in the attacks on civilians. Another intelligence officer said Wagner’s group or another private performer could be involved.
German intelligence officials on Wednesday briefed members of at least two parliamentary committees on the findings, according to people familiar with the process.
“The reported atrocities have greatly affected the members of the relevant committees where it was reported,” said one intelligence official.
Another said the agency had great confidence in the findings, although it was not specific about how it received the radio communications. The third person said that the information contributes to the understanding of attitudes in the Russian army, but it is hardly “final evidence of who shot whom at what time.” The man said the examples discussed by the BND point to an atmosphere of panic that is causing soldiers to “cut corners”.
Alex Whiting, a visiting professor at Harvard Law School who previously co-ordinated investigations at The International Criminal Court in The Hague, said the key issue that needs to be distinguished from intercepted communications is whether soldiers “act in accordance with a plan or a plan.” general direction ‘.
“The mere fact that they will talk to each other about these killings will show this and refute any suggestion that these were spontaneous, accidental events,” he added.
The International Criminal Court said on February 28 that it was investigating possible war crimes in Ukraine. Experts tell The Post how the legal process works. (Video: Alexa Juliana Ard / The Washington Post, Photo: The Washington Post)
Reliance by Russian troops on unprotected communications devices, including smartphones and radios, has made their units vulnerable to targeting, Western defense and intelligence officials say.
A BND spokesman declined to comment. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit made an elliptical reference Wednesday to “credible indications” that Russian forces in Bucha were questioning prisoners “who were subsequently executed”. He only quotes “insights we have.”
President Biden and others have called for Putin to be tried for war crimes, and prosecutors in Ukraine and across Europe are gathering evidence of abuse on the battlefield. The International Criminal Court is investigating, as are national authorities.
Last month, Germany’s federal prosecutor’s office launched an investigation into Russian war crimes suspects, saying it was considering attacks on Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure. In its investigation, Germany relies on the principle of universal jurisdiction, which gives national courts the power to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by foreign nationals.
The principle that allowed Israel to prosecute Adolf Eichmann in 1961 was recently used by Germany to prosecute crimes committed in Iraq and Syria, including by former intelligence officer under Syrian President Bashir al-Assad. Officer Anwar Raslan has been convicted of crimes against humanity in the world’s first state-sponsored torture trial under Assad. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Claire Parker of Washington contributed to this report.
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