UKRAINIAN officials claimed to have found a mass grave containing nearly 300 people in the town of Bucha on the outskirts of the capital Kiev on Saturday. 

The gruesome discovery was made after troops retook control of the area from Russian forces. 

“In Bucha, we have already buried 280 people in mass graves,” Mayor Anatoly Fedoruk said. 

“All these people were shot, killed, in the back of the head,” he said, adding that a 14-year old boy was among the victims. 

Ukrainian forces were unable to recover bodies from the street amid fears that they had been booby-trapped.

The town was occupied soon after the launch of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24. 

Fierce fighting was reported on the streets, but troops eventually withdrew after Moscow announced it was “scaling back operations” around the Ukrainian capital. 

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell congratulated Ukrainian forces on the liberation of Kiev and condemned the Russian actions. 

“Shocked by news of atrocities committed by Russian forces,” he said. “All cases must be pursued, namely by [the International Criminal Court].”

Russia, like its fellow UN security council members China and the United States, does not recognise the court.

German vice-chancellor Robert Habeck said that he was speaking to EU ministers about increasing sanctions on Russia following the discovery. 

“This terrible war crime cannot go unanswered,” he said. 

Russian air strikes hit southern ports including Odessa, Mykolayiv and Mariupol today taking out oil installations and other infrastructure. 

Moscow has dismissed reports, including the discovery of the mass grave, as fake and denies targeting civilians. 

On Saturday Kremlin press secretary Dimitry Peskov described Ukraine as a hostile country which has allowed fascism to flourish.