It is reported that the Russian commander suspected of committing "horrific and inhuman" war crimes in Bucha, Ukraine, is a military veteran, who was recently blessed by the Russian Orthodox Church, according to a report in the British newspaper, The Times.

That officer, according to the Times, is Lieutenant-Colonel (Lieutenant Colonel) Ezzatbek Omorbekov, commander of the 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, one of the divisions that contributed to the occupation of the Ukrainian town of Bucha, about 15 miles (less than 25 kilometers) from the capital, Kyiv.

The Russian forces under his command are accused of killing unarmed civilians, and there were also reports that women and children were brutally raped in this town, and mass graves were discovered there after the withdrawal of the Russian forces and bodies of people were found with their hands tied behind their backs.

The Times credits InformNapalm, a Ukrainian volunteer initiative that monitors the activities of the Russian military and its services, as using open source intelligence to identify the commander of Unit 51460.

His personal details have been published online, including his email address, phone number and home address.

In November 2021, an Orthodox priest blessed Omorbekov, while his unit was stationed in a town outside Khabarovsk in the far east of Russia, before this unit was deployed in Ukraine.

After the blessing of the Bishop of Khabarovsk, Omorbekov commented, "History shows that we fight most of our battles with our souls."

He added that "weapons are not the most important thing, and the church is the place where we can take the sacrifice and prepare for the events to come, and with the blessing of the Lord we hope to achieve the same things that our ancestors achieved."

The officer, who is believed to be 40, was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal in 2014 by Dmitry Polyakov, Russia's deputy defense minister.


The Times adds that Omorbekov is now accused of orchestrating the rape, looting and killing of hundreds of Ukrainian civilians. Local Ukrainian media reported that the death toll in the town of Bucha had reached between 330 and 340.

"InformNapalm" promised to reveal more information about Omorbekov and explain how to identify him soon, and the group also published photos of Russian soldiers it said had served alongside Omorbekov, although all the men identified denied responsibility for the crimes in videos posted on social media. social.

"I and my comrades who have served with me since 2014 are accused of war crimes in Ukraine," one of them said.

"I am just an ordinary Russian citizen.. I am not a soldier.. I have never participated in any military operations."

Another said, "People say I was involved in the war in Ukraine in which I killed people and children. These are all lies. There is not a single evidence of my participation in this."