Russia slams reports of mass graves in Izyum, accuses Ukraine of fabricating its discoveries

The Kremlin has accused Kyiv of fabricating its discoveries of mass graves, denying its forces were responsible for large-scale killings in east Ukraine. Ukraine recaptured Izyum and other towns in the east this month. Kremlin supply routes have been crippled as a result of this. Hundreds of graves, some containing multiple bodies, were discovered in the region, bringing into limelight once again the atrocities being committed by the Russian forces in Ukraine.

"These are lies," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday. Moscow, he said, "will stand up for the truth in this story."

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Ukraine had said that most of the bodies bore signs of a violent death.

"Among the bodies that were exhumed today, 99 percent showed signs of violent death. There are several bodies with their hands tied behind their backs, and one person is buried with a rope around his neck," Oleg Synegubov, head of the Kharkiv regional administration, had said.

Additionally, the graves of the buried were not marked with names or dates. The Russian troops simply marked a number while burying the dead, leaving no trail for the Ukrainian authorities to identify the victims, officials had said.

Meanwhile, fears of an atomic emergency were renewed after Ukraine said that Russian rockets landed precariously close to a nuclear power station in southern Ukraine.

In his address to the nation on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Russians were "panicking" as his forces hold recaptured territory in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

(With inputs from agencies)