> I know emotions are running high in this thread but asking to educate myself.
I hope You would learn something from today's message by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on situation where few Ukrainian kindergartens shelled by Russian rocket strikes:
> Today’s Russian attacks on a kindergarten and an orphanage are war crimes and violations of the Rome Statute. Together with the General Prosecutor’s Office we are collecting this and other facts, which we will immediately send to the Hague. Responsibility is inevitable.[0]
N.B. I'm Ukrainian living in Ukraine. Here is my statement for HN:[1]
As horrific as that is, that sort of stuff happens in wars all the time. It's so common that it even has its own fancy word to make it sound less horrific: collateral damage. That said, unless Russia was intentionally targeting the kindergarten (and/or the Russians didn't reasonably believe the kindergarten to be housing enemy troops at the time) I don't really see how that can be treated as a war crime.
For the record I think Russia's invasion is morally wrong and unjustified.
The invasion itself may well be a war crime too (though there are gray areas and Russia has been trying to present itself as on the right side of those lines):
What actions exactly have I defended? Awful, horrific shit on scales beyond our comprehension have happened in basically every war in human history, including the deaths of countless innocent civilians. But to count as a war crime, the deaths of civilians has to be intentional (or at least with some level of reckless disregard for the safety of civilians, the standards of proof for which would be extremely high in a war). I've seen no evidence put forward yet that the kindergarten that got shelled was shelled intentionally.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine is morally wrong (and as a sibling comment pointed out, the invasion itself may be a war crime). Deaths of civilians caused by Russia's invasion are not inherently war crimes in and of themselves. It's not like felony murder, where any death caused in the commission of a felony is instantly treated as a murder. Civilian deaths caused by a war of aggression are not inherently war crimes.
Are you willing to feel the same anger and hate that you feel towards Russia towards virtually every other nation that has ever existed in human history? Because otherwise, you're "defending" them in the same way I'm "defending" Russia because mass deaths of civilians happens in basically every single war.
Oh no! I am against any Russian aggression and the atrocities they are committing. This is terrible. Please understand that I am only trying to understand the approach that organization was taking with the charity, never questioning how evil Putin is or that he needs to be held accountable.
I just hope you would be able to understand feeling of Ukrainian 14-year-old girl, killed by Russian missile yesterday on the street of Uman city, Cherkasy region, Ukraine.[0]
I hope You would learn something from today's message by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on situation where few Ukrainian kindergartens shelled by Russian rocket strikes:
> Today’s Russian attacks on a kindergarten and an orphanage are war crimes and violations of the Rome Statute. Together with the General Prosecutor’s Office we are collecting this and other facts, which we will immediately send to the Hague. Responsibility is inevitable.[0]
N.B. I'm Ukrainian living in Ukraine. Here is my statement for HN:[1]
[0] https://twitter.com/DmytroKuleba/status/1497186665156255754
[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30395897