It is a rainy afternoon in Buzova, a suburb just outside Kyiv. The drops fall heavily on the umbrellas of the spectators, the lush grass, and in the newly opened tombs. The sound of sod roofs in the ground spreads throughout the burial ground.
Oleksander Bugeruk stands under a black umbrella. With a sullen, sad expression, he stares at two open graves. In one lies the son, and in the other lies his mother.
– What can I say?
Oleksander looks down at the ground, while thinking back to the moment he heard that his son had been killed.
– They called me and said that Oleksandrovych was dead. Then they came with the remains of him in the trunk of a car.
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Oleksandrovych (20) was a professional driver. In the days after the invasion began, he had helped evacuate those who wanted to leave the areas north of Kyiv.
– One of his best friends was killed in Hostomel, so he went and took out his wife and daughter. That’s why he was in the car when it happened.
As his son was driving through Irpin – right on the outskirts of Kyiv – he had suddenly come face to face with a Russian tank. The tank fired a grenade.
What was left of the son was delivered to Oleksander in a bag.
– This was Sunday 27 February, Oleksander recalls.
– And “Babo” was killed two weeks later.
Killed while seeking refuge
On Sunday, March 13, the war was to require another family member. Lydia, Oleksander’s mother, was preparing lunch when she suddenly heard the banging of artillery shots around the neighborhood.
She decided to go to a bomb room a few hundred meters away. She hurried out the door, and walked purposefully down the street while the bangs resounded. Suddenly a grenade struck 150 meters in front of her.
She was killed by the splinters.
In the midst of the worst days of the war, Oleksander had to dig temporary resting places for his son and mother. While the grenades were hailed on the horizon, the bodies were sunk in the burial ground we are now in.
Today, the remains will rise again to the surface. Oleksander will give a proper and dignified goodbye. In addition, the deceased family members will be investigated in the investigation of war crimes.
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Investigation underway
When Russian forces withdrew from the Kyiv region in late March, they left behind bombed-out neighborhoods, destroyed infrastructure, and hundreds of dead and executed civilians. The investigation into this is in full swing, confirms Irina Pryanishnikova, spokeswoman for the police in the Kyiv region.
She is also at the cemetery today, together with two investigators from the police.
– We have found over 10 mass graves in the region so far. And about 1,000 civilians were killed during the occupation, she said.
The UN recently stated that over 4,500 civilians have been killed in Ukraine so far in the conflict. The number of injured civilians is around 5500.
The Ukrainian prosecuting authorities have so far registered more than 15,000 war crimes since the invasion began, and trials against several of the suspected Russian soldiers are underway.
Revealed
The rain is pouring down on the five volunteer helpers who will lift Lydia up from the grave. One of them is standing down in the hole, trying to place strips of cloth around his body.
Oleksander hugs the umbrella as he watches repeated, failed attempts to lift his mother up with muscle power.
The body is covered with several, colorful blankets and scarves. The men stumble across the lawn with Lydia between them.
One of the investigators – Vitaliy Sukhinin – pulls the scarf away from Lydia’s chalk-white face. The skin is partially dissolved, but you can see the contours of the expression of the 70-year-old lady. Oleksander looks at his mother from a distance, and jerks with a few gasps, before taking his hand to his mouth. He turns red around the eyes, and turns away.
No doubt about war crime
The remains of Oleksandrovych are wrapped in a dark piece of cloth. It is heavy and unwieldy, and one of the men has to lift the remains of his body from under the hole. Finally, both grandmother and granddaughter lie side by side on the green meadow.
The father is silent in the rain while he is tragically reunited with the family. In addition to the loss of his mother and son, his brother was also abducted by Russian soldiers.
– Oleksander’s brother was found shot in the head. All indications are that he had been tortured, since he was also shot in both knees, says the police spokesperson – Irina Pryanishnikova.
Investigator Sukhinin leans over the cloth bag with the remains of Oleksandrovych. Carefully he tries to open the tight knot, while grimacing at the smell. After a brief glimpse into the piece of cloth, he gets up and walks away.
– The son’s body is too damaged to identify, he starts to explain.
Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the attack was a war crime. The injuries to her grandmother also show that her death can be classified as a violation of the international law of war.
– They were both civilians, so it is clearly war crimes, concludes Irina Pryanishnikova.
Sukhinin adds that both bodies will be driven away for further examination and investigation.
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“Nothing short of a tragedy”
Oleksander now stands with Ludmila Zakabluk – the mayor of the neighboring municipality of Pyatisil. They talk in a low voice, while a black van comes driving through the graveyard. Several volunteers put the remains in body bags that are loaded in the back of the car.
– I knew the family well, says Zakabluk to Nettavisen.
The confident mayor stands without an umbrella while the rain runs down his face.
– It is nothing short of a tragedy, she says, and folds her arms down along the side.
She describes the Russians’ behavior in the village as “animal brutality”.
The war had also rolled right past her own home. Russian tanks had driven straight through the local cemetery. Afterwards, they had shot at each other at random, and blew up a civilian car with two families who tried to flee, she says.
– In the car sat a mother with two children aged 12 and 17, and two parents with a small child. They had lived with me before they were to flee, she says.
The car had “Children” written all over the body. It did not stop the Russian tank from attacking them.
– The mother of one family died. So did the 17-year-old girl, says Zajabluk.
– I want no one in society to experience this, and I pray to God that Europeans must never face Russian forces. They destroy everything in their path that is built with hard work.
