No Guarantee of Life even for Children with Russian’s Inhumane Missile Attack
Two missiles that flew over the heads of civilians. Twenty bombs are attached to the ballistic part. Each of them scattered 16,000 metal fragments, which brutally knocked down the people.
On April 8, a missile attack hit a train station in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, where about 4,000 civilians were gathered. It is estimated that 107 people, including at least five children, were killed and more than 100 injured.
Many civilians had gathered at the station in an attempt to escape from the eastern part of the country, where the Russian military offensive was intensifying.” The mayor of Kramatorsk, Honcharenko, expressed outrage. ‘It was a known fact that the station was an evacuation center for residents. It was a deliberate attack to create panic among civilians. President Zelensky also denounced it as ‘a new war crime by Russia.
The Western countries are particularly concerned about the fact that the SS-21B (commonly known as the Tochka), a short-range ballistic missile, was armed with cluster munitions. It is an inhumane weapon that scatters countless metal fragments and indiscriminately kills and injures people in a wide area. Because of the large number of unexploded bombs, the damage is known to spread even after the battle is over.
On April 8, UN Secretary-General Guterres issued a statement saying, “This is totally unacceptable. It is a gross violation of international human rights, and the perpetrators must surely be held accountable,” he said.
This is not the only time Russian forces have attacked non-military facilities. They are shelling schools, hospitals, concert halls …… and even nuclear power plants to supply electricity. The damage to civilians is growing by the day. According to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the civilian death toll is over 1,000 just known. The number of children who have died is said to be close to 100.”
The Terrifying Meaning of “For the Children”
Why is the Russian military stepping up its attacks on non-military facilities? Behind it all, there is a terrifying goal. Professor Itsuro Nakamura of Tsukuba Gakuin University, an expert on the situation in Russia, tells us.
I believe that the Russian military’s attacks on non-military facilities are intentional. It is by no means accidental, and behind the scenes there is President Putin’s calculation. He is trying to increase the number of refugees to Western countries. If non-military facilities are attacked, civilians will be in mortal danger. The Ukrainian authorities will have no choice but to call for evacuations out of the country.
Refugee admission is a serious problem for Western countries, especially in Europe. Huge budgets are needed for living conditions and food supplies. In some countries, conflicts with their own citizens are intensifying as refugees have taken their jobs. Russia is trying to generate a large number of Ukrainian refugees to shake up and divide the Western countries over acceptance.”
In the April 8 attack on the station, the mysterious words “for the children” were written in white paint on the missile. Professor Nakamura speculates that these words conceal a terrifying intention on the part of President Putin.
In one sense, the message could be taken as an attempt to free the children from the persecution of the Ukrainian leadership, which Putin calls ‘neo-Nazis. But I think it is a sign that says, ‘They are coming for your children. ‘ It’s a sign of crisis and fear on the part of Ukrainian citizens. If they stay in the country, there is no guarantee of life, even for children. For the sake of the children,’ they should leave the country as refugees as soon as possible.”
The Russian Defense Ministry denied involvement in the attack on the station. It claims it was a staged attack by Ukraine.
Photo: AFP/Afro