Not many hours have passed since the Ukrainian strike in Donetsk on New Year’s Eve, which resulted in the deaths of dozens of Russians, and Moscow is for the first time since the start of the war speaking publicly about its losses on the battlefield.
In fact, the admission of the losses even caused the reaction of nationalist bloggers who demand the punishment of the military commanders because the latter chose to house the soldiers next to an ammunition depot.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, 63 soldiers were killed during the attack, while it stressed that the barracks-turned-lodge was hit by four missiles fired from US-made HIMARS multiple rocket launchers, claiming that two other missiles were shot down.
On the other hand, a source in the occupied Donetsk administration, who declined to be named, said: “According to my information, there are less than 100 dead so far.”
According to what Russian military bloggers reported, the massive destruction was due to the fact that they chose a building that was located next to an ammunition depot as a barracks. And all this while military commanders knew they were within range of Ukrainian missiles.
Meanwhile earlier on Monday Kyiv announced the downing of all 39 drones launched by Russia in an unprecedented third straight night of airstrikes against civilian targets in Kyiv and other cities.
Ukrainian officials have pointed to the success of Ukrainian forces as evidence that Russia’s tactic in recent months of launching airstrikes aimed at disabling Ukraine’s energy infrastructure is increasingly failing as Kyiv bolsters its air defenses.
Every mistake has a name
On the other hand, unverified footage posted online shows a huge building in Makiivka reduced to rubble and thick smoke billowing from it.
The former commander of pro-Russian troops in eastern Ukraine, Igor Girkin, who is one of the biggest Russian nationalist military bloggers, spoke of hundreds of dead. But a little later he edited his post and added the injured. As he pointed out, ammunition was stored at the site and the Russian military equipment was not camouflaged, he said.
It is worth noting that since February 24, 2022, when the Russian invasion began, this is the first time that Moscow has acknowledged that it has dozens of victims in an incident on the battlefield. And that’s because whenever he makes announcements about losses he usually quotes a small number. For example, it acknowledged only one death among the hundreds of crew when Ukraine sank the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the cruiser Moskva, in April.
It is recalled that Moscow launched New Year’s night attacks on Ukrainian cities, including Kiev, hundreds of kilometers away from the front lines. The nighttime raids mark a change in tactics after months in which Moscow typically carried out such strikes about a week apart.
After launching dozens of missiles on December 31st, Russia launched dozens of Iranian Shahed drones on January 1st and 2nd. However, Kyiv said today that it had shot down all 39 drones in the latest wave, including 22 that were shot down in the capital’s airspace. Kyiv said the new tactic was a sign of Russian desperation as Ukraine’s ability to defend its airspace has improved.
“Now they are looking for directions and attempts to hit us somehow, but their terror tactics will not work. Our sky will turn into a shield,” the chief of staff of the Ukrainian president, Andriy Yermak, said on Telegram.
Last night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised Ukrainians for showing gratitude to troops and each other and said Russia’s efforts would prove futile. “Drones, missiles, everything else won’t help them,” he said of the Russians. “Because we are united. They are united only by fear,” he concluded.
