Ukrainian attack on school bus was ‘cynical fascism’ – ombudswoman
A Ukrainian drone attack on a school bus in Russia’s Zaporozhye Region which injured several children earlier this week was an act of blatant “fascism,” Moscow’s human rights ombudswoman, Tatyana Moskalkova, has said.
On Tuesday, Russian officials accused Ukraine of striking the school vehicle in Vasilyevsky district. According to Zaporozhye regional governor Evgeny Balitsky, the attack seriously injured the bus driver and also wounded five children, although their condition is reportedly stable.
Moskalkova strongly condemned the incident, calling it “monstrous” and an act of “cynical, blatant fascism.” “It would be an understatement to call this a crime against humanity,” she said.
The ombudswoman accused the West of ignoring Ukrainian attacks and turning a blind eye to the flourishing of neo-Nazi ideology in the country. “Exactly 80 years ago, the Yalta Conference brought together leaders of the anti-Hitler coalition to plan the defeat of fascism,” she said. “Why is the collective West silent today when it sees the crimes of Ukrainian Nazis?”
She went on to urge the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child to issue a strong response to what she described as “horrific crimes against civilians.”
Russia has consistently accused Ukraine of launching strikes on civilian targets, with officials in the Donetsk People’s Republic claiming earlier this week that shelling by Kiev’s forces had injured ten civilians in just over one day. Moscow has also consistently voiced concern about the unchecked resurgence of neo-Nazi ideology in Ukraine, designating the country’s “denazification” as one of the key goals of its military campaign.
