White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said his Ukranian counterparts tell him the mass graves discovered in Izyum, Ukraine, after Russian forces were pushed out, are in some ways “worse” than those discovered in Bucha.
Sullivan said he was briefed on the situation Tuesday morning when he spoke with his counterpart, Ukrainian chief of staff Andriy Yermak.
“He gave me a report about what the Ukrainians were discovering around Izyum, and he put it quite bluntly: He said that this is in some ways worse than Bucha, and we will see more of these as we go, as Ukraine de-occupies towns that have previously been occupied by Russian forces. We are finding increasing evidence of these mass atrocities.”
Already more than 440 graves have been discovered in Izyum with hundreds of bodies, including those of civilians and children. Police found a mass grave Friday with the bodies of 17 Ukrainian soldiers. Many had broken bones, hands tied behind their backs and other signs of torture.
“We are going to work with the international community through every mechanism that is available to hold Russia accountable for this,” Sullivan said at Tuesday’s press briefing.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video address Saturday investigators had discovered more than 10 torture chambers in the liberated areas of Kharkiv region.
The bodies of 458 people were found after Russians left Bucha in April.
Read More: Mass graves in Izyum, Ukraine, may be ‘worse’ than Bucha: Biden