Sunday’s Ukrainian attack with the HIMARS missile system hit a Russian base in Makiivka and sparked outrage and criticism among Russian military leaders, according to a US think tank.
The latest report from the Institute for the Study of War cites reports in the Russian news space and social media revealing that Sunday’s attack in the town of Makiivka, in the partially occupied Donetsk region, has sparked much debate and controversy, with several voices to raise doubts. the effectiveness of military leadership.
According to this report, the Russian Defense Ministry is attempting to shirk responsibility for the origin of the Ukrainian attack and denies the operational security of its armed forces in the Donetsk region.
Military intelligence agents in Moscow received reports that the attack occurred when Russian soldiers breached operational security by using personal mobile phones, allowing Ukrainian forces to launch a precision strike.
Pro-Kremlin Russian media and some Russian military bloggers amplified this information, warning of the risks that Ukrainian troops could exploit bad practices among Russian soldiers, and asked the Defense Ministry for stricter guidelines on soldiers’ use of mobile phones.
According to analysts at the Institute for the Study of War, these military failures “compromise President Vladimir Putin’s efforts” to “appease the pro-war community” in Russia.
Russian sources quoted in the report guarantee that Putin has ordered the Defense Ministry to investigate the Makiivka attack by the end of this week.
According to the General Staff of Ukraine, the attack targeted a staging post for Russian military personnel and equipment, destroying up to 10 pieces of equipment.
While the official death toll has not yet been released, the Strategic Communications Department of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated that at least 400 deployed people were killed and 300 injured in the attack.
The geolocated images of the attack showed the devastation at a Polytechnic School, located just eight miles from the front line.
Russian sources claimed that there were 600 soldiers from a mobilization regiment inside the school building at the time of the attack, with some Russian military bloggers suggesting that the death toll could be in the hundreds.
The Russian defense ministry acknowledged the attack, saying four of the six missiles killed 63 Russian soldiers, and Samara region governor Dmitry Azarov confirmed that some of the dead soldiers were local residents.
Source: DN
