Ireland accuses Russia of ‘war crimes’ in Ukraine

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) – Ireland on Tuesday accused Russian forces of “war crimes” over their military actions in Ukraine.

Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the situation in Ukraine is “extremely bleak,” and a significant number of civilian casualties can be expected.

“The situation is absolutely awful,” Coveney said, speaking to RTE.

“More and more civilians we know are being killed and there’s increasing evidence now to show that Russian forces are actually targeting civilians which is a war crime and I think we should be very clear and blunt about that,” he said.

The Irish minister also said they “also see credible reports and pictures that are difficult I think to question, that cluster bombs are being used in built-up areas in the city of Kharkhiv late yesterday.”

They are “completely unacceptable breaches of international law,” he said.

“They’re war crimes and they should be called that. And of course we’re seeing an increased presence all the time of heavily armored Russian columns coming into Ukraine from Russia.”

Coveney said Ireland was “not neutral” in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, adding “we are taking sides on this conflict” amid Russia’s war on Ukraine.

The Russia-Ukraine war entered its sixth day on Tuesday, having faced outrage from the international community since then, with the EU, UK, and US implementing a range of economic sanctions on Russia.

So far, at least 136 civilians, including 13 children, have been killed and 400 others, including 26 children, have been injured in Ukraine, according to UN figures.

Around 660,000 people have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries, the UN Refugee Agency said.