Russian soldier pleads guilty to killing a civilian in Ukraine war crimes trial

Shishimarin, who could be sentenced to life in prison, was prosecuted under a Ukrainian criminal code that addresses the laws and customs of war. [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [View in your browser]( [Top of The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- What The World is following Russian soldier pleads guilty to killing a civilian in Ukraine war crimes trial Credit: Efrem Lukatsky/AP Ukraine Sgt. Vadim Shishimarin, a 21-year-old Russian tank commander, [pleaded guilty]( to killing an unarmed civilian in the first trial for war crimes over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Shishimarin, who could be sentenced to life in prison, was prosecuted under Ukrainian criminal code that addresses the laws and customs of war. According to Ukrainian Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova, her office has been preparing cases against 41 Russian soldiers for bombing civilian infrastructure, killing civilians, rape and looting, but it is not cleat whether some of this cases will be prosecuted in absentia. Dozens of allegations of sexual attacks have been made against Russian soldiers in Ukraine in the past two months. Lyudmyla Denisova, the Ukrainian ombudswoman for human rights, has said she believes many of the assaults were deliberate and systematic. But as The World’s Europe correspondent Orla Barry reports, [proving that in court will be challenging](. 🎧 Libya An attempt by one of Libya’s rival prime ministers, Fathi Bashagha, to take office in Tripoli [was thwarted]( after fighting broke out between opposing militias. Bashagha later said that he would [base his government]( in the city of Sirte, over 260 miles east of the capital. The political situation in Libya remains in a stalemate, with rival groups [claiming to run]( the country. The UN-recognized administrations of Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibeh, which is based in Tripoli, has refused to cede power to Bashagha. Parliamentary and presidential elections planned for last December were postponed after questions were raised over the eligibility of candidates. NATO Finland and Sweden [have submitted]( their applications for membership to NATO, triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in a move that could rewrite Europe’s security map. However, the military orrganization’s envoys, meeting in NATO’s headquarters in Brussels, were not able to reach a consensus about whether membership talks with Nordic countries should start. Turkey renewed its opposition to Finland and Sweden joining. The World's Marco Werman spoke with Soner Cagaptay, a senior fellow with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, about the [possible factors behind Turkey's decision]( 🎧 and what it means for NATO. --------------------------------------------------------------- From The World [Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o’s famously banned play returns to Kenya]( Credit: Kanaka Rastamon/Flickr This month, a play called “Ngaahika Ndeenda,” or “I Will Marry When I Want,” [was performed for the first time in almost 30 years]( at the Nairobi National Theater in both its original Gĩkũyũ and in English. The play highlights pivotal moments in Kenya’s history, including the brutal violence of British colonialism, exploitation by foreign companies, land grabbing and a damning critique of the failures of Kenya’s newly independent government. [A 'transnational hate movement' online radicalized the Buffalo shooter, extremism expert says]( [Members of the public are held off at a distance as President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visit the scene of a shooting at a supermarket to pay respects to victims of Saturday's shooting in Buffalo, New York, Tuesday, May 17, 2022.]( Credit: Matt Rourke/AP Amarnath Amarasingamm, a professor at Queen's University in Ontario and an expert on extremism, helped authenticate the 180-page document that the Buffalo shooter published online. [Amarasingamm said](the shooter wrote that he was deeply influenced by the white supremacist who killed 51 Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019, and basically plagiarized his points. --------------------------------------------------------------- Double Take Good news: Biniam Girmay, a 22-year-old, Eritrean road cyclist with the Intermarché–Wanty–Gobert Matériaux team, [became the first Black African]( to win a Grand Tour stage in the Giro d'Italia on Tuesday. 🚴🏿 Bad news: Celebrations of the historic win were cut short after Girmay was hit in the eye with the cork of a prosecco bottle he was opening. He pulled out of the Giro d’Italia today. Credit: Intermarché–Wanty–Gobert Matériaux Twitter --------------------------------------------------------------- [In case you missed it from The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Don't forget to subscribe to The World's Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: [RadioPublic](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Stitcher](, [Soundcloud](, [RSS]( [The World logo]( [The World on Facebook]( [The World's Twitter account]( [Donate]( | [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [Edit your subscription]( | [Unsubscribe]( | [View in your browser]( Top of the World is written weekday mornings by the team at [The World](. [The World]( is produced by [PRX]( and [GBH](.