MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/. At least 5,399 civilians were affected by Ukraine’s crimes in the past year, with at least 809 people losing their lives, Rodion Miroshnik, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s ambassador-at-large in charge of overseeing the Kiev regime’s crimes, said at a briefing.
"According to the most reliable data, which has been verified, at least 5,399 suffered from Ukraine’s crimes. At least 809 of them were killed," he said, adding: "However, this is just the tip of the iceberg."
He also noted that the figure was expected to grow as Russian forces liberated more territories and investigations were carried out.
"Facts are emerging about mass murders, violence and looting. The number announced today does not include at least 300 to 350 civilians who were killed by Ukrainian militants in the areas that have been or are being liberated by our armed forces. Legal proceedings are still ongoing in those cases," the Russian Foreign Ministry’s ambassador-at-large explained.
According to him, the bodies of many people killed by the Ukrainian armed forces have been found in those areas and witness statements have been collected from their close relatives; new information keeps coming in about additional burial sites and the circumstances of those people’s deaths are being investigated.
"As for Ukraine’s regular and deliberate shelling attacks on residential areas, I can say for sure that the highest possible intensity of those strikes indicates their calculated goals and preconceived political motives," Miroshnik stressed.