A few days after the town was retaken from Russia, Ukraine claims hundreds of burials have been discovered outside of Izyum.
In a woodland outside of the town, advancing Ukrainian forces found wooden crosses, the majority of them bearing numbers.
Authorities announced that some of the tombs would be opened for exhumation on Friday.
Early reports indicate that some of the fatalities may have perished from shelling and a lack of access to healthcare, while it is yet unclear what happened to them.
There are also signs that some of the graves could belong to Ukrainian soldiers.
Regional police head Volodymyr Tymoshko told the BBC more than 400 bodies were thought to have been buried at the site.
Izyum, invaded in the early days of the war, was used by Russia as a key military hub to supply its forces from the east.
In his nightly address, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the “necessary procedural actions” had begun in the area.
“We want the world to know what is really happening and what the Russian occupation has led to. Bucha, Mariupol, now, unfortunately, Izyum… Russia leaves death everywhere,” he said. “And it must be held accountable for that.”
The Ukrainian leader was referring to alleged mass graves found this spring in Bucha, near the capital Kyiv, and also near Mariupol – the key south-eastern Ukrainian port now occupied by Russian troops.
Andriy Yermak, the head of President Zelensky’s office, tweeted a photo of the alleged mass burial site, also saying that more information was expected on Friday.
Much of Izyum lies in ruins, with one local politician telling reporters that up to 80% of the town’s infrastructure has been destroyed, and bodies are still being discovered in the rubble.
A mass burial was found in Izyum, Kharkiv region. Necessary procedures have already begun. All bodies will be exhumed and sent for forensic examination. Expect more information tomorrow.
Russia is a murderer country. A state sponsor of terrorism. pic.twitter.com/7pKTrYvlUF
— Andriy Yermak (@AndriyYermak) September 15, 2022
Izyum and a number of other cities in the Kharkiv region were liberated earlier this month during a swift Ukrainian counter-offensive that appeared to have surprised Russian troops and left them unprepared to defend their positions.
Ukraine says it has identified more than 21,000 possible war crimes – including killing civilians and rape – committed by Russian troops since President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of the country on 24 February.
Investigators and journalists found what appeared to be evidence of the deliberate killing of civilians in Bucha and other nearby areas.
Ukrainian forces said they found mass graves and evidence that civilians had been killed after their feet and hands were bound.
The International Criminal Court has already sent a team of investigators and forensics experts to Ukraine to investigate this.
US President Joe Biden and former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson have both accused Russia of carrying out war crimes in Ukraine.
The Russian government has repeatedly denied targeting civilians, accusing Ukraine and the West of fabricating evidence.