A Ukrainian forensic scientist claims that the Russians used this ammunition after finding arrows in the bodies of Boutcha victims. In 2014, Israel had already been singled out for using this controversial weapon.
In early April, the whole world was horrified to discover the mass graves north of Kyiv left behind by the Russian army. While retaking the area around the capital, which had been deserted by the Kremlin troops who had been transferred to the Donbass, the Ukrainian army discovered hundreds of bodies scattered on the streets of several locations. On April 14, the special representative of Figaro in Ukraine counted 403 dead and 16 missing in the city of Boutcha alone.
When asked about these atrocities, residents described “sometimes systematic assassinations when men of military age are arrested, tortured and summarily shot in basements and dugouts”. Others reported “the murderous fury of the soldiers whose units suffered heavy casualties […] and who take revenge on the civilians they suspect of informing their enemies”. Finally, others “have witnessed groundless murders committed by a deserted army of soldiers shooting at passers-by for fun.”
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After a three-week investigation, Ukrainian coroners have uncovered another parameter: Dozens of civilians were killed by small metal darts, the Guardian’s special envoy reports. “We have found several very beautiful objects resembling nails in the bodies of men and women, as have others of my colleagues in the region,” Vladyslav Pirovskyi, a Ukrainian coroner, told the British daily. These elements would come from an unusual ammunition called “dart shells”.
Ammunition used since World War I
Several weapons experts interviewed by the Guardian confirmed this hypothesis. Fired from a tank or cannon, these anti-personnel ammunition were widely used during World War I. It can contain from 8 to 10,000 darts of 3 or 4 cm in length. After firing, the grenade explodes and the projectiles disperse like a shower of daggers in a conical arc 300 meters long and about 90 meters wide. On impact, the dart can lose its rigidity at the front and bend, while the rear, made up of four fins, detaches and causes a second injury. According to Neil Gibson, an expert interviewed by the Guardian, the darts found at Boutcha came from 122mm 3sh1 artillery shells. This type of ammunition had already been used in Donbass in 2014 at the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
A pro-Russian separatist holds an arrow found in the Donestsk region in 2014. DOMINIQUE FAGET / AFP
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Invented by the Italians in 1911-1912, this ammunition was first used by the French in 1914, before the Germans and British also made use of it, according to the Australian National Memorial website. At that time, the cartridges containing 20 to 250 darts were dropped from airplanes or airships at enemy infantry and made it possible to pierce soldiers’ helmets. If abandoned during World War II, this deadly projectile reappeared during the Vietnam War.
Regular deployment in the Gaza Strip
Despite its violence and inaccuracy, this weapon has never been banned by international law. On the other hand, the associations point out that it must be used with care. “To be able to penetrate dense vegetation and hit large numbers of enemy soldiers, dart grenades should never be used in built-up civilian areas,” Amnesty International reminded in 2009. For several years, NGOs have denounced the Israeli army’s use of these weapons in the Gaza Strip. On April 16, 2008, a Reuters cameraman “was killed by several arrows caught in a shell fired by an Israeli tank,” the news agency reported in August of that year. “Eight other civilians between the ages of 12 and 20” were also killed by these missiles. The Israeli army justified its shooting by saying that the journalist’s camera had been mistaken for a weapon.
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In 2014, Israel also fired arrow grenades at certain villages in the Gaza Strip, France 24 recalls. Here, too, the Israeli army recognized the use of these weapons “in appropriate situations”. According to TV, Israel has used these munitions extensively since the second Intifada (2000-2005). In Ukraine, the international investigation will clarify whether the use of these “arrow grenades” violates international law and constitutes a war crime.
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