According to the Russian army, the Russian journalist of the RIA Novosti news agency, Rotislav Zhuravlev, was killed today, Saturday, as a result of a strike by the Ukrainian side in the Zaporozhye region in southern Ukraine.
In a statement, he explained that “the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine fired artillery at a group of journalists, injuring 4 journalists of varying severity”, indicating that “in the process of evacuation, Rotislav Zhuravlev died from wounds received as a result of a cluster munition explosion.”
“Inhuman”
In this regard, the vice-president of the Federation Council, Konstantin Kosachev, blamed Washington and Kyiv for the death of Zhuravlev and the injury of a number of his colleagues with cluster munitions.
Kosachev wrote in the Telegram that “the use of cluster munitions is inhumane and their use in combat should be ruled out and prohibited,” according to Russian media.
“Proven to be a lie”
He added: “From what happened today, it became clear that all the assurances of the Americans and Ukrainians that there were no plans for Ukraine to use these munitions against the civilian population turned out to be lies, and the responsibility for the crime of using these munitions lies both with Ukraine and the United States.”
According to the RIA Novosti agency, for which Zhuravlev worked, “the explosion occurred near the village of Pyatikhatki” in the Zaporozhye region.
for the first time
Notably, on July 7, the United States announced its decision to deliver cluster bombs to Ukraine for the first time since the beginning of the Russian military operation.
The decision, which US President Joe Biden said was “very difficult,” came as Kiev forces struggled to advance in a counteroffensive they launched a month ago to recapture Russian-held territories in eastern and southern Ukraine.
At the same time, Washington confirmed that it had received guarantees from Kyiv that these weapons, banned by a number of countries, would not be used against civilians.
Banned in many countries
Notably, the controversial weapon can disperse up to a hundred small explosive devices that can remain in the ground without detonating, posing a risk to civilians after the end of the conflict.
It is banned in many countries, especially in Europe, that signed the 2008 Oslo Accords and were not joined by Russia, the US or Ukraine.
