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Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

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There are a lot more evil idiots than evil geniuses.

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Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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One way or another, he’s a liar.

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Not all heroes wear capes.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

We still have time to mess this up!

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Wake up. Grow up. Get in the fight.

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Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

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You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / War for Ukraine Day 583: Zchor Babin Yar!

War for Ukraine Day 583: Zchor Babin Yar!

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Picture of the ravine at Babin Yar, Ukraine

(Babin Yar Ravine, Image found here)

Quick housekeeping note: this weekend’s updates will be briefer than usual. I have a bunch of stuff I’m on the hook for. So if I miss anything, put into the comments.

Today is the 82nd anniversary of the massacre at Babin Yar.

It has been 82 years since Nazi occupiers committed their most heinous crime on the territory of Ukraine.
Babyn Yar is one of a number of Holocaust memorial sites in Ukraine. During the Nazi occupation, more than 100,000 Jews, Roma, and Ukrainians were murdered here. Every Ukrainian is reminded each day of this deep wound in the heart of the Ukrainian capital. Never again!

📹 @United24media

Since the history hasn’t changed, here’s what I wrote last year regarding Babin Yar:

As the NAZIs moved on Kyiv in 1941, approximately 100,000 of the city’s 160,000 Jewish citizens were able to flee. On the 26th of September 1941 Sonderkomando 4A commanded by SS-Standartenfuhrer Paul Blobel, were given the implementation order to execute the 60,000 Jews remaining in Kyiv. The precipitating incident was a series of attacks on the Kyivan buildings the NAZIs were using as headquarters. The buildings were actually sabotaged by Soviet NKVD officers who had been left behind in Kyiv to specifically attack the NAZIs and disrupt their operations. Those details were not learned until after WW II ended.

The roundup on the 28th was done as a misdirection; the Jews were told they were going to be relocated to two new developments. This was a lie. On the morning of 29 September, the remaining Jews of Kyiv were marched down the Jewish cemetery in Kyiv and to the Babin Yar ravine. They were ordered to undress, turn over any valuables they had with them, and move the edge of the ravine in groups of ten where the NAZIs executed them using the ravine as a mass grave. Two years later in September 1943 Blobel was ordered back to Kyiv. At the same time orders were given for the disinterment of the mass grave so the Jewish corpses could be cremated. 327 prisoners from the Syretsk concentration camp were brought in as slave labor to destroy the evidence of the NAZI’s crimes against humanity at Babin Yar. 100 of them were Jewish. On the morning of 29 September 1943, two years to the day after the massacre, they learned that the NAZIs planned to execute them as well now that they’d finished the forced labor of covering up the NAZIs crimes. The 327 workers already had an escape plan and they immediately revolted against their captors and put it into effect making a break for the forest. Only fifteen survived. The rest were either shot and killed during the initial break for the tree line or were rounded up and executed by the next morning.

Babin Yar, often with the Russian pronunciation of Babi Yar, became a rallying cry for Jews after World War II and the Holocaust. Zchor Babi Yar, remember Babin Yar, was still being used as the name for a B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO) chapter when I was a member in the 1980s. In fact I’m pretty sure I have a jersey from that chapter with their name on it in a box of stuff somewhere.

Today, on the anniversary of the NAZIs genocidal acts in Babin Yar, outside of Kyiv, as well as the heroic resistance against those actions two years later, we have 366 days worth of new evidence of Russia’s genocidal acts towards Ukrainians. A fraction of which we document here night after night.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.

Not only thanks to the strength of our weapons but also thanks to the strength of our spirit and humanity, evil will never prevail in Ukraine – address of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

29 September 2023 – 18:31

Dear Ukrainians,

A brief report on this day. An emotional day.

I began it with events at Babyn Yar.

The 82nd anniversary of the mass shootings of Jews by the Nazis in Babyn Yar.

In just a few days in September 1941, over 30,000 people were killed. In total, during the Nazi occupation, about 100,000 people were killed in Babyn Yar. Jews, as well as Roma and Ukrainians. Representatives of other nations.

Very important to preserve the memory of these victims and of the fact that the evil the Holocaust perpetrated was defeated and punished.

Ukraine preserves such a memory. “Never again!” For us, for Ukraine, for the entire civilized world, these are not empty words. And it will always be so.

It is very symbolic that today I met with our Ukrainian teachers – those on whom, in fact, the preservation of historical memory and much of humanity depends.

This Sunday, Ukraine will celebrate Teacher’s Day – the educators’ day.

Today, I thanked all Ukrainian teachers, educators, instructors, and mentors. All those who undertake one of the most honorable missions in life – educating children in what is necessary to navigate their destiny and be resilient on their life journey.

But education is always more than acquiring knowledge and skills and mastering a profession. It’s about character and its strength. It’s about the clarity of distinguishing between good and evil, which comes when you study human culture.

Education prepares and calibrates a person’s moral compass so that it works, and through this, a person’s work and life enrich humanity. This is very important.

And we see, particularly in what Russia is doing, what happens when the education system has collapsed. When the moral compass of people and society is broken. Evil prevails in such a country.

This will never happen in Ukraine. Not only thanks to the strength of our weapons but also thanks to the strength of our spirit, the strength of Ukrainian characters, our humanity, which will undoubtedly prevail.

This week significantly strengthened our country and our people. There will be important news for Ukraine tomorrow – for our warriors, for our entire state.

We are working to ensure that the coming weeks will add strength to Ukraine – internal strength – and the necessary cooperation with the world. So that the world hears us, understands us, and supports us. I thank everyone who is helping!

Glory to everyone who fights and works for the sake of Ukraine and its people!

Glory to Ukraine!

Andriy Yermak, head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, led a discussion of Ukraine’s seven point peace plan at Babin Yar today. Here are the details:

Andriy Yermak in Babyn Yar discusses implementation of seventh point of Peace Formula regarding restoration of justice with foreign ambassadors

29 September 2023 – 21:17

On the instructions of the President of Ukraine, Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak held the ninth meeting with representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in our country regarding the implementation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Peace Formula.

The event was dedicated to the implementation of the seventh point of the Peace Formula “Restoration of Justice.” The meeting, which took place at the National Historical Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar, was attended by representatives from 76 countries, both in person and online.

Andriy Yermak said that the meeting was taking place at a location whose name has become a symbol of honoring the memory of genocide victims.

“The Nuremberg Tribunal forever condemned both those who started the world war and those who executed criminal orders,” he said.

At the same time, the Head of the Presidential Office reminded that victims of the repressions of the Stalinist regime, including those executed in Kyiv’s Bykivnia, are still waiting for justice because the international community has not yet provided proper legal assessment of the actions of this murderous regime, whose descendants continue bringing torture and death.

Andriy Yermak emphasized that the answer to the query of justice is contained in point seven of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, based on international law and the UN Charter.

“The path to ending this war and establishing lasting peace lies only through the complete restoration of justice. Only swift and irrevocable punishment of those responsible for the fundamental crime of aggression and subsequent war crimes, including genocide, will prevent the recurrence of aggressive wars in the future,” he said.

Andriy Yermak reminded that significant work had been done over the past year, and important decisions were made at the international level. In particular, the Registry of Damage for Ukraine has already started its work in The Hague, where claims for compensation for damages and evidence of their occurrence are being submitted by those affected by the war.

The Head of the Presidential Office emphasized the need to move forward and implement a compensation mechanism that would enable the collection of reparations from Russia.

“Currently, we are working on proposals for the relevant international agreement. We would appreciate it if your governments would join this work,” he said.

Traditionally, a briefing was held for the representatives of the diplomatic corps present, during which the Ukrainian vision for the implementation of the Peace Formula point regarding the establishment of justice was given.

Daria Zarivna, Advisor to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, who moderated the event, said that throughout the war, mass graves of the killed and places of torture are constantly discovered on liberated Ukrainian territories. Therefore, the issue of justice is the cornerstone of the Peace Formula and a necessary condition for achieving a truly sustainable, fair, and comprehensive peace.

Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba emphasized that all those guilty of war crimes against Ukrainians must be held accountable without exception. According to him, there is no alternative to an international tribunal that will establish Russia’s guilt.

“Ukrainians and the entire world demand justice, which must prevail through joint efforts. We must act now to prevent such crimes in the future,” he said.

Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin presented a work plan for point seven of the Peace Formula, designed for 2023-2026.

He said that point seven of the Peace Formula relies on pillars such as ensuring effective investigations at the national level, ensuring accountability for the crime of aggression, strategic partnership with international justice mechanisms, and promoting bilateral and multilateral intergovernmental partnerships for the investigation and prosecution of international crimes.

Another fundamental issue is the compensation and restitution for the damage caused to Ukraine and Ukrainians by Russian aggression.

Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine Iryna Mudra said that Russia’s frozen sovereign assets in Western jurisdictions and funds of sanctioned Russian businessmen and oligarchs should become an important source of payment for compensation mechanisms. Work is underway to implement the corresponding action plan.

Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance of Canada Chrystia Freeland said during her online speech at the meeting that her country has already legislated the ability to direct confiscated sanctioned Russian assets to support Ukraine and is ready to share the relevant experience with other states.

Lawrence Summers, an American economist and the honorary rector of Harvard University, emphasized the importance of timely consensus decisions today. He stated that from the perspective of international law, it is entirely legitimate to use Russian assets for Ukraine’s economic recovery and to support the victims of Russian aggression.

Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Smyrnov told the diplomats about the search for the optimal format for a special international tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

Ambassador at Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Anton Korynevych informed about the activities of the Core Group on the establishment of a tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, which has already involved 38 states.

Representatives of the foreign diplomatic corps expressed their views on the importance of justice and the work that Ukraine, together with its partners, is undertaking to implement the relevant point of the Peace Formula.

At the end of the meeting, Andriy Yermak thanked all the participants and announced that preparations have already begun for the next meeting of national security advisors and political directors of foreign ministries of the world’s states regarding the key principles of achieving a sustainable and just peace for Ukraine.

No new Russian mass mobilization this year. Just the regular annual one.

So, the Kremlin has decided against a new wave of mass mobilization this year.

In Russia, yet another military call-up season (that’s about compulsory conscripts aged between 18 and 27 and not about war mobilization) begins on October 1.

This period ends on December 31. Which essentially means no mobilization waves until at least the beginning of 2024. The system can’t handle both processes at the same time – which is why Russians had to delay yet another call-up season in the fall of 2022 due to the mobilization announced.

And in the next year, say hello to the shit show of Putin’s “re-election” for his fifth term next March.

IMHO, it’s very unlikely that Putin gives a go to a new mobilization wave (300,000-400,000 more men to be drafted) in the ever of presidential elections – given how naturally disastrous such a reluctant move was last year.

Well, unless something really bad happens at the front line (like last year’s Ukrainan breakthrough at Kharkiv) and they have to hastily plug holes with masses of cannon fodder and halt dangerous Ukrainan advances.

Despite very obvious need for hundreds of thousands of mobiks to keep the front-line stalemate stable, the Kremlin again defies dire military necessity for the sake of its own political comfort within Russia.

Which is good — given that extreme tiredness and exhaustion are growing in the Russian military after a year in combat with little to no rest, this will continue impeding Russia’s strength in the upcoming winter campaign.

Fuck you and your desperate need for frontline rotation and rest, dear Russian mobik rotting in trenches for a year — the Tsar considers yet another massive draft campaign for a senseless, unwinnable war too risky for his rule at the moment.

So the Kremlin is likely declare a new mobilization wave following the March elections – as always, way too late for the Russian military, thankfully.

My question here: is the Russian military even physically capable of having 400,000 more men to be hunted down from streets, organized, trained, given commanders, and armed as military units?

A lot of unpleasant things may happen within the next year before Putin’s wet dream — the return of Donald Trump — comes (or doesn’t come) true.

Tokmak:

Sorokyne:

Melitopol:

Southern front, so probably either Kherzon or Zaporizhzhia Oblasts:

Touch not the cat, but a glove!

Chernihiv:

DIY air defense!

Residents of the Kyiv region illegally acquired and stored Russian anti-aircraft missile system and ammunition. At first, the police discovered and seized the TOR air defense system (Unfortunately, the photo has not been published), later police managed to establish the location of the ammunition.
According to preliminary data, the weapon was left by Russian troops during hostilities in the territory of Chernihiv region.
https://google.com/amp/s/bykvu.com/ua/bukvy/zbroia-na-ponad-30-milioniv-hryven-politsiia-kyivshchyny-vykryla-zlovmysnykiv-iaki-zberihaly-zrk-okupantiv/amp/

Magyar’s Birds! Urozhaine, Donetsk Oblast:

Kharkiv:

That’s enough for tonight.

Your daily Patron!

A new video from Patron’s official TikTok!

@patron__dsns

Люблю метеликів!🦋Усім позитивний і барвистий лизь🥰

♬ оригинальный звук – 🖤SNIFYKS🖤

Here’s the machine translation of the caption:

I love butterflies! 🦋 to all a positive and colorful lick 🥰

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

15Comments

  1. 1.

    Alison Rose

    Today, on the anniversary of the NAZIs genocidal acts in Babin Yar, outside of Kyiv, as well as the heroic resistance against those actions two years later, we have 366 days worth of new evidence of Russia’s genocidal acts towards Ukrainians. A fraction of which we document here night after night.

    This made me cry a little. And then the happy pupper reunion video made me cry a little more.

    Words just don’t mean anything anymore, exhibit 714: russians to compete as neutral athletes at the 2024 Paralympics.

    Thank you as always, Adam.

  2. 2.

    Gin & Tonic

    I see where the machine translation of Patron got thrown off, but it should be “to all a positive and colorful lick.”

  7. 7.

    Prescott Cactus

    Ukraine war: Displaced children facing challenges in schools, EU says. By Courtney Lewis, BBC News

    Sad.

    The EU said 1.3 million Ukrainian children were living in member states, most of them aged under 14.

    Many of the students have started their second school year away from home, and the agency warned they were at risk of falling behind.

  8. 8.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Alison Rose: It’s been true for decades that the members of the Soviet Union’s Olympic/Paralympic teams have been members of the armed forces.  Why should it be different now?  US armed forces members have been part of the Olympics as well, particularly in shooting sports.

  10. 10.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Alison Rose: Or to put a fine point on it: these RU athletes never were and never will be “neutral”.  If they want to be neutral they can defect and claim asylum in some other country.  Until they do so, we (and that means the IOC, etc) should treat them as partisans of Russia.

    Sadly, there’s (bribe) money at stake, so that won’t happen.

  11. 11.

    NutmegAgain

    I’ve been reading Babi Yar [sic] by Anatoly Kuznetsov. He was a Russian-speaking writer who lived in Kyiv during the German occupation. The documentary novel of what he heard and saw in the days of the massacres wasn’t published until 1966. Anyway, it’s very intense and does illustrate the the chaos of those years. I welcome commentary and critique from our more knowledgeable folk about the book and where it sits in the various literatures it touches on.

  12. 12.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Alison Rose: Point taken.  I’m with Chetan in that these people should simply be banned.  But, The IOC and FIFA are two of the most corrupt organizations on the planet.

  14. 14.

    way2blue

    I read about Holodomor and Babyn Yar and see before & after photos of Mariupol and Bakhmut.  And I wonder at the social engineering required to rewire these human souls.  Such that the vandals take pride in their depravity.  Correct me if I’m off base…  But.  For the Russians it seems to start before birth with alcoholic parents.  Then from childhood on—a constant blare of Russia’s divine mandate to crush…   Ad infinitum.

  15. 15.

    Carlo Graziani

    For clarity’s sake: Dmitri’s tweet is about the Melitopol “direction,” but it should not be understood to mean that the UA is approaching Melitopol itself. The current battlefield edge is at Solodka Balka, 18 km (10 miles) North of the important rail/road junction of Tokmak, which itself is 60 km (40ish miles) North of Melitopol, along a major road.

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