Ukraine and Western countries have accused Russia of committing war crimes in Ukraine ever since hundreds of bodies were found around Kyiv following the withdrawal of Russian forces from the area.
A team of AFP journalists saw 20 bodies on Yablunska (Apple Tree) Street in Bucha on April 2, after Russian forces left the town.
In the weeks that followed, reporters spoke to dozens of witnesses, consulted death certificates and obtained a list of all the bodies found in the city - sometimes including details of how they died.
Here is what we know about the events in Bucha that sparked an international outcry and prompted the West to harshen its sanctions against Russia and boost military aid supplies to Ukraine.
Pleasant suburb devastated
Before the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, Bucha was a family-friendly suburb of Kyiv with around 37,000 inhabitants.
Surrounded by pine forest, it is located around 30 kilometres (19 miles) northwest of the capital.
Since the first days of the invasion, like Irpin and other areas around Kyiv, it saw fierce fighting.
The Russian army first arrived on February 27 but only fully took control on March 5, according to Human Rights Watch, a non-governmental organisation that carried out an investigation there.
Ukrainian authorities had carried out several civilian evacuations before this date.
It is estimated that around 4,000 inhabitants were left when Russian forces took over.
Following the withdrawal of Russian forces on March 31, the mayor of Bucha, Anatoliy Fedoruk announced on April 1 that the city had been 'liberated'.
A photo shows massive destruction in the area of conflict at the Bucha town after it was liberated from Russian army in Ukraine on April 4, 2022
First macabre discoveries
AFP journalists arrived in Bucha the following day.
Looking around the devastated town, they discovered Yablunska Street, one of the longest thoroughfares in Bucha, with 20 bodies in civilian clothing scattered over several hundred metres.
One man had fallen onto his bike, another still had a shopping bag in his hand. Yet another man was seen with his hands tied behind his back.
At least two of them appeared to have head wounds.
The bodies looked like they had been on the ground for at least several days.
How many dead?
During the month-long occupation by Russian forces, two large mass graves were created to temporarily bury the bodies since the city's three cemeteries were inaccessible because of the fighting.
Following the withdrawal of Russian forces - some 400 bodies were found - either in the mass graves or buried in gardens or sometimes lying out in the open, according to local police chief Vitaly Lobas.
Lobas on April 20 said 'around 25 percent' remained unidentified, and the majority had been shot dead.
AFP saw a mass grave behind a church on April 3. It contained more than 80 bodies, the police said.
There were similar scenes in other areas in the Kyiv region that were occupied by Russian forces.
In the region as a whole, more than 1,000 civilian bodies have been found, according to Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanishyna.
'War crimes'
On April 4, two days after pictures of the Yablunska dead first appeared in the media, President Volodymyr
