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A suspected Russian torture chamber – dubbed a “mini Auschwitz” – has been discovered in a newly-liberated town, Ukrainian officials have claimed.

The room, which contained a box of gold dental crowns, was found inside a de-occupied town near Izyum, a city in the eastern Kharkiv region of Ukraine.

Having been occupied by Russian forces since April, Pisky-Radkivski was freed by Ukrainian troops last week.

Russia’s front ‘begins to collapse’ – Ukraine war latest

As they moved through the region, local officials and National Police said they made the grim discovery in the Borova district, alongside several other horrendous items.

A gas mask with a dirty cloth attached to it was found, Kharkiv’s chief police investigator said, with Ukraine’s defence ministry claiming it had been forced onto “the head of a victim, who was covered with a smouldering rag and buried alive”.

The box of gold dental crowns that was found prompted the ministry to draw parallels between Russian and Nazi forces, describing the room as a “mini Auschwitz”.

The Nazi concentration camp, where an estimated 1.1 million people were killed, saw more than 40kg of gold and white metal from false teeth removed from the bodies of victims murdered in gas chambers, according to the Auschwitz Memorial.

Photos released by the head of Kharkiv’s National Security Service’s investigative department, Serhii Bolvinov, also showed a smashed phone, pieces of what appeared to be barbed wire, and a sex toy.

“Neighbours constantly heard screams from there. Investigators found a terrible torture chamber in the village,” he said.

He confirmed that police “know the names of the victims” and an investigation is now underway.

A gas mask with a cloth attached to it was found in Izyum. Pic: Head of the investigative department of the National Security Service in the Kharkiv region
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A gas mask with a cloth attached to it was found in Pisky-Radkivski. Pic: Head of the investigative department of the National Security Service in the Kharkiv region

‘People were intimidated, beaten and abused’

The country’s National Police Force has accused Russian troops of committing war crimes during their occupation of the area.

“When Russian servicemen entered the village, they drove the locals out of their homes and settled there themselves,” it said.

“People were intimidated, beaten and abused. The Russian occupiers left looted houses. Dirt and filth – the trademark of the ‘Russian world’,” it added.

Investigators found several items in the room in Izyum. Pic: Head of the investigative department of the National Security Service in the Kharkiv region
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Pic: Head of the investigative department of the National Security Service in the Kharkiv region
Inside the alleged 'torture chamber'. Pic:National Police of Ukraine
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Inside the alleged ‘torture chamber’. Pic:National Police of Ukraine

‘Mass burial sites’ previously found in Izyum

This is not the first time Russian forces have been accused of committing war crimes during the war in Ukraine, with tens of thousands of alleged incidents currently being investigated by police.

The United Nations human rights office has said Russia’s invasion has caused a dire human rights situation in the country, and a wide range of violations, including extrajudicial killings and torture, that could amount to war crimes have been committed.

A war crime is defined by the United Nations as a serious breach of international humanitarian law committed against civilians or “enemy combatants” during an armed conflict.

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Izyum dead ‘show signs of torture’

Russia has already been accused of war crimes in Izyum, following the discovery of more than 440 graves in the town earlier in the conflict.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a “mass burial site” was found in September.

Mr Bolvinov claimed that some of the victims were “shot dead”, with others died as a result of artillery fire, mine explosions, and airstrikes.

Graves in Izyum
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Graves in Izyum

Bodies found with their hands tied behind their backs

One of the most notable alleged war crime incidents to have taken place in Ukraine was in the town of Bucha, where dead bodies were found with their hands tied behind their backs.

Just outside the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, the area was devastated by fighting, and after Russian troops began to withdraw, images revealed a 45ft-long makeshift mass grave outside a church.

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Bodies still being found in Bucha

Sky News verified two videos showing bodies laying in the street, including one with at least seven corpses on the pavement.

Photos taken by Associated Press showed bodies of people dressed in civilian clothes with their hands tied behind their backs and wounds to the back of their heads, with a suggestion that some were shot at close range.

The images prompted condemnation and offers of more support to Ukraine from across the world, including the UK and the United States.

Russia has repeatedly denied committing any war crimes.

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs – in worst day for indexes since COVID

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Stock markets slump for second day running after Trump announces tariffs - in worst day for indexes since COVID

Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.

While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.

As it happened: Worst week’s trading in five years

All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.

The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.

Read more: What’s a bear market?

Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.

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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.

The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.

And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.

Pic: Reuters
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US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters

Trump holds trade deal talks – reports

It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indian and Israeli representatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.

The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.

Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.

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Do Trump’s tariffs add up?

Read more:
Markets gave Trump a clear no-confidence vote
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow

China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.

Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.

Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.

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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump

He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’

“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they’re also battling with another problem

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Financial markets were always going to respond to Trump tariffs but they're also battling with another problem

Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.

The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.

The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.

Tariffs latest: FTSE 100 suffers biggest daily drop since COVID

Financial investors had been gradually re-calibrating their expectations of Donald Trump over the past few months.

Hopes that his actions may not match his rhetoric were dashed on Wednesday as he imposed sweeping tariffs on the US’ trading partners, ratcheting up protectionism to a level not seen in more than a century.

Markets were always going to respond to that but they are also battling with another problem: the lack of certainty when it comes to Trump.

More on Donald Trump

He is a capricious figure and we can only guess his next move. Will he row back? How far is he willing to negotiate and offer concessions?

Read more:
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow
Trade war sparks ‘$2.2trn’ global market sell-off

These are massive unknowns, which are piled on to uncertainty about how countries will respond.

China has already retaliated and Europe has indicated it will go further.

That will compound the problems for the global economy and undoubtedly send shivers through the markets.

Much is yet to be determined, but if there’s one thing markets hate, it’s uncertainty.

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

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Court confirms sacking of South Korean president who declared martial law

South Korea’s constitutional court has confirmed the dismissal of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was impeached in December after declaring martial law.

His decision to send troops onto the streets led to the country’s worst political crisis in decades.

The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.

The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.

Demonstrators who stayed overnight near the constitutional court wait for the start of a rally calling for the president to step down. Pic: AP
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Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP

Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.

The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.

Read more from Sky News:
Highs and lows of Five-Year Keir
MP tells Sky News she was targeted online by Tate brothers

More on South Korea

The Constitutional Court is under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement of the impeachment trial. Pic: AP
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The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP

After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.

He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.

His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.

The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.

South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.

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