The Kupiansk civilian convoy shelling was the killing of Ukrainian civilians carried out by the Russian Army on September 25, 2022, on the Kurylivka-Pishchane highway near Kupiansk, Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. 26 civilians were killed.
| Kupiansk civilian convoy shelling | |
|---|---|
| Part of the 2022 Kharkiv counteroffensive in the Russian invasion of Ukraine | |
 | |
| Location | 1 km from the railway track between Kurylivka and Pishchane, Ukraine. |
| Coordinates | 49°39′24.4″N 37°44′51.2″E / 49.656778°N 37.747556°E |
| Date | September 25, 2022 ~09:00 (UTC+3)[1] |
| Target | Ukrainians |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
| Deaths | 26[2] |
| Injured | At least 3[3][4] |
| Perpetrators |  Russian Armed Forces |
At that time, the section of the road was in the "gray zone" (area neither fully controlled by either side).[5][6] The Ukrainian military was not able to reach the scene until 1 October 2022.
History
editDuring September 2022, the Armed Forces of Ukraine staged a counteroffensive in Kharkiv Oblast. Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi was regained on September 27.[7]
On September 30, Ukrainian soldiers found the remnants of a convoy in the outskirts of Kurylivka. Bodies of civilians were discovered in six cars and a van heading towards Pishchane.[8][9]
Following news reports, seven witnesses came forward who had escaped to the village of Kivsharivka. According to them, on the morning of September 25, their evacuation convoy left Kurylivka in the direction of Svatove, Starobilsk, through what they believed was the only road open. At around 9 o'clock, their column was ambushed by a group of Russian soldiers which shot at the convoy from both sides. Small arms were used to kill the wounded and those who tried to escape.
Police officers subsequently identified the bodies as local residents. Among the dead was the organizer of the refugee convoy who had charged ₴6,000 per evacuee and was a former resident of Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi.[6][10][11] Twelve of the dead had been named by October 20, 2022.[10][11]
A further body was discovered on October 17, 2022, 1.5 kilometres away from the incident site.[12] The final death toll was 26 people.[12] 22 people managed to escape.[10]
The bodies and a car were examined by French experts who discovered signs of the use of 30 mm and 45 mm high-explosive shells, as well as VOG-17 and VOG-25 grenades.[13][14]
References
edit- ^ Федоркова, Тетяна (2022-10-01). "Російський обстріл колони під Куп'янськом на Харківщині: свідчення однієї з уцілілих". Суспільне | Новини (in Ukrainian). Suspilne. Archived from the original on 2022-10-23. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ Федоркова, Тетяна (2022-10-18). "Слідчі знайшли ще одного загиблого від російського обстрілу колони під Куп'янськом і двох уцілілих дітей". Суспільне | Новини (in Ukrainian). Suspilne. Archived from the original on 2022-10-23. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ Солодовнік, Марія (2022-10-04). "Розстріл колони під Куп'янськом: люди, які вижили, розказали про напад та свій порятунок". Суспільне | Новини (in Ukrainian). Suspilne. Archived from the original on 2022-10-23. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
- ^ "Двох дітей, які вижили під час розстрілу колони під Куп'янськом, вдалося повернути додому. Ще двоє залишаються в руках окупантів" (in Ukrainian). Gordon.ua. 2022-10-19. Archived from the original on 2022-10-24. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
- ^ "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 10". Institute for the Study of War. September 10, 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-03-25. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ a b "Обстріл автоколони на Харківщині: 24 загиблих, серед них вагітна і 13 дітей" [Shelling of a motorcade in Kharkiv Region: 24 dead, including a pregnant woman and 13 children]. Ukrainska Pravda (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2022-11-02. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ "На Харківщині звільнили Куп'янськ-Вузловий, ще 6% області – під окупацією" [In Kharkiv region, Kupyansk-Vuzlovy was liberated, another 6% of the region is under occupation]. Ukrainska Pravda (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2022-10-11. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ Fedorkova, Tatyana (September 30, 2022). "Російські окупанти обстріляли цивільну колону біля Куп'янська — військовий" [Russian occupiers fired at a civilian convoy near Kupyansk — a military one]. Suspilne. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
- ^ "24 killed after Ukraine evacuation convoy shelled: Governor". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2023-07-25.
- ^ a b c "Розстріл автоколони під Куп'янськом: ідентифікували 12 із 26 жертв" [Shooting of a motorcade near Kupyansk: 12 out of 26 victims have been identified]. Ukrinform (in Ukrainian). 20 October 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-11-04. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ a b "Знайдено 25 жертву розстрілу автоколони на Харківщині: літня жінка проповзла 200 м" [The 25th victim of the motorcade shooting in Kharkiv region was found: an elderly woman crawled 200 miles]. Ukrainska Pravda (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2022-10-24. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ a b ""Пройшов 1,5 км та помер": правоохоронці виявили 26 жертву розстрілу колони на Харківщині" ["Walked 1.5 km and died": law enforcement officers found the 26th victim of the convoy shooting in the Kharkiv region]. Новини України - #Букви. 2022-10-18. Archived from the original on 2022-10-22. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ "Експерти визначили, з якої зброї окупанти розстріляли колону на Харківщині" [Experts have determined with which weapon the occupiers shot the convoy in the Kharkiv region]. Ukrainska Pravda (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 2022-10-31. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
- ^ "On Ukraine backroad, children's bodies and wreckage of civilian convoy shelled by Russians - National | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2023-07-25.