A new case of brutality falls on the war in Ukraine . This time it is the Russians who are calling the Ukrainians into question, accusing them of having cold-handedly executed ten soldiers who had surrendered .

As evidence, Moscow has shown some videos that have been making the rounds on social media, and the UN has announced that it is examining them.

No official comment from Kiev, but what happened is a further boulder on the already weak prospects for a truce. The first nine months of the conflict were marred by countless allegations of abuses and war crimes, starting with the executions of civilians by the Russians in Bucha . Furthermore, in recent days, the UN has published a report according to which prisoners on both sides have been subjected to torture and ill-treatment.

The new complaint came from the Moscow Defense Ministry, which spoke of a " deliberate and methodical murder of more than ten Russian soldiers taken prisoner with a blow to the head ". In one of the videos circulated on Russian-language social networks, some soldiers are seen surrendering to the troops with the Ukrainian flag and lying down on the ground in the courtyard of a bombed-out house. The pictures abruptly stop when shots are heard. Another video, taken from above, shows the apparently lifeless bodies with bloodstains.

The episode allegedly took place in Makiivka, a village in the eastern region of Lugansk reconquered in recent days by the Ukrainian army. Moscow has called for "an international investigation" warning that "Zelensky and his accomplices will be held responsible" and accusing Westerners of turning a blind eye to the abuses committed by the Ukrainians.

The United Nations Office for Human Rights (Ohchr) said it was examining the videos, clarifying that " allegations of summary executions should be promptly, fully and effectively investigated, and all perpetrators held accountable ".