Killed in cold blood: Ukrainian civilian 'is shot dead by Russian soldiers after holding up his hands in surrender'

 Drone footage has emerged from Ukraine which appears to show a group of Russian soldiers executing a lone Ukrainian civilian who was trying to surrender.

The video, obtained by German broadcaster ZDF and filmed on March 7, shows a silver car driving along the E40 European expressway west of Kyiv. The car was heading towards Kyiv, but upon seeing a Russian tank and a group of soldiers parked by the side of the road, the driver made a rapid U-turn before braking and coming to a stop.

The man exited the car and immediately raised his hands above his head, turning to face the Russian soldiers in a clear show of surrender.

But within seconds he was gunned down in cold blood.

Moments later, a gang of soldiers are seen grabbing the civilian's lifeless body and dragging him away into the trees nearby.

The drone operator, a member of the Ukrainian territorial defence force in Kyiv, said a woman and child were also travelling in the car and were subsequently taken captive by the Russian forces.  

The slaughtering of civilians, particularly those who do not pose a threat, is considered a war crime under international humanitarian law.

Yet Russian authorities continue to insist that their forces have only targeted strategic military locations and are not waging war on the civilian population of Ukraine.

The car is heading towards Kyiv, but upon seeing a Russian tank and a group of soldiers parked by the side of the road (pictured), the driver makes a rapid U-turn, before braking and coming to a stop

The man exits the car and immediately raises his hands above his head, turning to face the Russian soldiers in a clear show of surrender

Within seconds he is gunned down in cold blood. Moments later, a gang of solders are seen grabbing the civilian's lifeless body and dragging him away into the trees nearby. A woman and child were also travelling in the car, and were taken captive

The execution took place here, outside a petrol station on the E40 expressway west of Kyiv

The civilian's execution took place mere yards from another car, which appears to have been abandoned on the road outside a petrol station on the E40 expressway west of Kyiv after sustaining damage.

The silver car was later towed away and burnt according to the Ukrainian drone operator, who gave his name only as 'Zanoza' and explained he was tasked with using the Mavic III drone to observe Russian tank positions. 

The shocking incident took place outside the petrol station located a mere 10 miles from the towns of Irpin and Bucha, both of which been decimated in recent days by brutal Russian bombing campaigns, resulting in many civilian deaths and mass evacuations. 

The Ukrainian capital remains firmly under the control of Ukraine's military and territorial defence forces, and all Russian attempts to breach the city centre have been successfully repelled.

But Russia has in recent days begun a sustained bombing campaign of Kyiv, targeting civilian buildings as well as administrative centres to inflict considerable damage on the city's infrastructure, as has been observed in other urban centres such as second city Kharkiv and southern port city Mariupol.

Russian forces have taken heavy losses and have thus failed to seize any of Ukraine's biggest cities, despite Western officials claiming that Moscow thought it would win the conflict within days. 

But the civilian death toll continues to mount as the Russian bombing campaigns were turned on residential areas.  

Russia has in recent days begun a sustained bombing campaign of Kyiv, targeting civilian buildings as well as administrative centres to inflict considerable damage on the city's infrastructure

Debris carpets the ground outside a ten-storey apartment block affected by a shelling that took place in the Podilskyi district, early in the morning on Tuesday, March 15, Kyiv, capital of Ukraine

Aftermath of shelling of a residential building by the Russian troops in Svyatoshyn district of Kyiv, capital of Ukraine

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Monday evening verified a total of 691 civilians had been killed since the invasion began on February 24, but the true number is thought to be considerably higher.

Russian forces have intensified fighting in the Kyiv suburbs, notably around the town of Bucha in the north-west and the highway leading west toward Zhytomyr, regional leader Oleksiy Kuleba said this morning.

Twelve towns around Kyiv were reported to be without water and six without heat.

Across the capital region, 'kindergartens, museums, churches, residential blocks and engineering infrastructure are suffering from the endless firing,' Mr Kuleba said.

He said Russian troops are trying to cut off transport links to the capital and to destroy logistical capabilities while planning a wide-ranging attack to seize the capital.