Ukraine claims ‘terrible torture chamber’ discovered in town newly liberated from Russian forces
A suspected Russian torture chamber has been discovered in a newly-liberated town, Ukrainian officials have claimed.
The room 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.
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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”.
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
A 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”.
However, though the crowns may have been used in the torture of captives, it appears they were not, in fact, pulled from the dead by Russian soldiers.
A local dentist told German newspaper Bild that they actually came from his collection that was looted by invaders.
He said he thought the Russians probably stole them thinking they were gold when, in fact, they were stainless steel.
The dentist, named Sergey, told the newspaper, “I’m the only dentist here. So if they were found here, they must be mine.”
What appears to be a makeshift bed was found inside the room in Izyum. Pic: National Police of Ukraine
However, Sergey did reveal locals had told him that the crowns may have played a part in the torture, with Russians using them to “scare people”.
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.
‘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.
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.
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.
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 dying as a result of artillery fire, mine explosions, and airstrikes.
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.
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.
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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.
The conclave to elect Pope Francis’s successor will begin on 7 May, the Vatican has announced.
Some 135 cardinal electors – those under the age of 80 – will take part and vote for the new pontiff.
The rituals of the event, held in the Sistine Chapel, are elaborate and date back centuries. So how does the process work?
When Pope Francis died, the Catholic Church entered a period known as “sede vacante”, meaning “empty seat”.
His ring and seal – used to dispatch papal documents – were broken to prevent anyone else from using them.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell – the Camerlengo, or chamberlain, who announced Francis’s death – became the interim chief of the Catholic Church.
Pic: Reuters
The conclave
Cardinals travel to Rome from all over the world and stay until a new pope is chosen.
Of the 252 current ones, there are 135 cardinal electors: 53 from Europe; 23 from Asia; 20 from North America; 18 from Africa; 17 from South America; and four from Oceania.
Italy has the most cardinals who can vote, with 17, while the US has 10 and Brazil has seven. The UK has three.
A papal crest dedicated to Pope Pius XII. Pic: Reuters
Once the conclave begins, the cardinals will not emerge from the Vatican until a new pope has been chosen. The word “conclave” comes from Latin, meaning “with key” – a reference to the isolation in which the cardinals are kept.
While holding voting sessions in the Sistine Chapel, they sleep in the Casa Santa Marta – a guesthouse inside the Vatican’s grounds.
The longest conclave lasted almost three years, between 1268 and 1271. Several have lasted only one day. The one which elected Pope John Paul in 1978 lasted less than three days. Cardinals chose Pope Francis in around two days.
While the conclave is ongoing, cardinals are unable to communicate with the outside world. No telephones, internet use or newspapers are allowed.
Except for the first day, when only one ballot is held, the cardinals hold two daily votes until one candidate has a majority of two-thirds plus one. They are sworn to secrecy about the voting.
White smoke?
So how do we know if a decision has been reached? Yes, this is the black smoke, white smoke part.
If the cardinals have not reached a majority, the cards and the tally sheets are placed in a stove and burned with an additive to produce black smoke, showing the outside world that a pope has not yet been chosen.
No pope yet… black smoke rising from the Sistine Chapel. Pic: Reuters
Watching for the tell-tale smoke arising from the top of the Sistine Chapel is a tradition, with Catholics crowding into St Peter’s Square for the spectacle.
If no result has been reached after three days, the sessions are suspended for a day to allow for prayer and discussion. More ballots are held until a two-thirds majority is reached.
When enough cardinals have agreed on a candidate, he is asked if he accepts the papacy and by which name he wishes to be known.
The ballots are burned as before, but with an additive to produce white smoke.
A Papal white skull cap. Pic: Reuters
New pope proclaimed
The new pope then dons his new papal vestments – tailors keep large, medium and small sizes ready – and sits on a throne in the Sistine Chapel to receive the other cardinals who file up to pay homage and swear obedience to the church’s new leader.
The senior cardinal deacon then steps out on to the central balcony of St Peter’s Basilica overlooking the square and announces in Latin: “Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum. Habemus Papam” (I announce to you a great joy. We have a pope) and reveals the cardinal’s name and the name he has chosen.
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The new pope then appears on the balcony to deliver his first public pontifical greeting and bless the crowds in St Peter’s Square.
A few days later, he celebrates a mass that marks the beginning of his papal ministry.
When Canada goes to the polls today, it might be the second election Donald Trump wins in six months.
The US president has transformed Canada’s political landscape, and the “Trump effect” looks like it will be the difference between winners and losers.
Tariffs, and his threat to annexe the country as the 51st state, have provoked a surge in Canadian nationalism, and it’s made a favourite of the candidate styled anti-Trump.
Step forward, Mark Carney: Former governor of the Bank of England, now Canadian prime minister.
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‘Canada will win’
His ruling Liberal party had been written off as an electoral contender. Canadians had turned their back on the party after a decade in power under Carney’s predecessor, Justin Trudeau.
The opposition Conservative Party, under the effective leadership of Pierre Poilievre, grew to a 25-point lead in the polls on the promise of change on the economy, crime and a chronic housing crisis.
However, his conservative politics are more aligned with the neighbour in the White House and, in Canada right now, it’s not a good look.
Read more: Everything you need to know about the election
Pierre Poilievre led the Conservatives to a 25-point lead before Trudeau stepped down. Pic: Reuters
In a stunning reversal of fortune, the Conservative Party’s lead vanished within weeks, as Canadians turned to Carney as the choice to take on Trump.
If he wins, the swing from Conservative to Liberal will be the biggest swing in the polls in recent democratic history.
Carney, 60, is the former governor of the Bank of Canada, as well as England. He replaced Mr Trudeau as Liberal Party leader and Canadian prime minister after his predecessor stepped down last month.
Polls indicate that Canadians see Carney as a stronger choice to negotiate with Donald Trump. He is a veteran of economic turmoil, having dealt with the 2008 financial crisis and Brexit.
Pierre Poilievre and Mark Carney after an English-language leaders’ debate in Montreal. Pic: Reuters
At a weekend news conference, Sky News asked the Canadian prime minister what lessons he’d learned from Brexit that could be applied to his dealings with Donald Trump.
He replied: “The lessons of Brexit are beginning to be applied. When you break off, or substantially rupture, trading relationships with your major trading partners, including the most important trading partner of the United States, you end up with slower growth, higher inflation, higher interest rates, volatility, weaker currency, a weaker economy.
“We’re in the early stages of that in the United States, and that’s one of the important things here. With respect to influencing the president, with respect to the dynamics of a negotiation, America’s going to get weaker as time goes on, we’re going to get stronger.”
Canada’s vote is as close as it gets to a single-issue election.
Carney’s position as favourite is reinforced consistently by the opinion polls, although the gap narrowed as election day approached.
It could yet be tight.
World
Trump ‘very disappointed’ in Russian strikes on Ukraine and calls for Putin to ‘sit down and sign a deal’
Donald Trump has said he’s “very disappointed” with Russia as he continues to push for a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine.
On Saturday, the US president met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Vatican for their first face-to-face meeting since their explosive White House summit.
The Ukrainian president said the meeting ahead of Pope Francis’s funeral could end up being “historic.” Hours later, Mr Trump questioned Vladimir Putin’s appetite for peace in a Truth Social post.
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From Saturday: Trump meets Zelenskyy at funeral
Speaking before boarding Air Force One on Sunday, Mr Trump again said the meeting went well, and that the Ukrainian leader was “calmer”.
“I think he understands the picture, I think he wants to make a deal,” he said, before turning to Mr Putin and Russia.
“I want him to stop shooting, sit down and sign a deal,” the US president said, adding he was “very disappointed that they did the bombing of those places (including Kyiv, where nine people were killed in a Russian airstrike on Friday) after discussions”.
However, Mr Trump said he thinks Mr Zelenskyy is ready to give up Crimea, which the Ukrainian leader has repeatedly said he would refuse to do.
He added that “we’ll see what happens in the next few days” and said “don’t talk to me about Crimea, talk to Obama and Biden about Crimea”.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, while Barack Obama was president.
Meanwhile, US secretary of state Marco Rubio told Sky’s US partner network NBC News that a peace deal to end the war was “closer in general than they’ve been any time in the last three years, but it’s still not there”.
“If this was an easy war to end, it would have been ended by someone else a long time ago,” he added on the Meet the Press show.
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It comes after North Korea confirmed it had deployed troops to fight for Russia, months after Ukraine and Western officials said its forces were in Europe.
State media outlet KCNA reported North Korean soldiers made an “important contribution” to expelling Ukrainian forces from Russian territory, likely to be the Kursk region.
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KCNA said leader Kim Jong Un made the decision to deploy troops to Russia and notified Moscow, and quoted him as saying: “They who fought for justice are all heroes and representatives of the honour of the motherland.”
It also quoted the country’s ruling Workers’ Party as saying the end of the battle to liberate Kursk showed the “highest strategic level of the firm militant friendship” between North Korea and Russia.
Last June, Mr Kim and Mr Putin signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty after a state visit – his first to the country in 24 years.
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From June 2024: Putin drives Kim around in luxury limo during state visit
The North Korean leader promised at the time “full support and solidarity to the Russian government, army and people in carrying out the special military operation in Ukraine”.
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