Makiivka: Russia blames missile attack on troops' phone use - BBC

Russia has said a caller twelvemonth rocket onslaught that killed astatine slightest 89 Russian soldiers happened due to the fact that troops were utilizing their mobile phones.

Ukraine deed a assemblage for conscripts successful Makiivka, successful the occupied Donetsk area, soon aft midnight connected 1 January.

Soldiers' usage of banned phones allowed the force to find its target, the Russian subject has present said.

While the fig of radical killed is unverified, it is the largest decease toll acknowledged by Russia successful the war.

Ukraine claims the fig is acold higher, saying 400 soldiers were killed successful the onslaught and a further 300 wounded.

Russia said that astatine 00:01 section clip connected New Year's Day, six rockets were fired from a US-made Himars rocket strategy astatine a vocational college, 2 of which were changeable down.

The lawman commandant of the regiment, Lt Col Bachurin, was among those killed, the subject of defence said successful a connection connected Telegram successful the aboriginal hours of Wednesday.

A committee is investigating the circumstances of the incident, the connection said.

But it is "already obvious" that the main origin of the onslaught was the beingness and "mass use" of mobile phones by troops successful scope of Ukrainian weapons, contempt this being banned, helium added.

"This origin allowed the force to find and find the coordinates of the determination of subject unit for a rocket strike."

Officials recovered blameworthy successful the probe volition beryllium brought to justice, the connection added, and steps are being taken to forestall akin events successful future.

Russia besides raised the fig of Russian soldiers killed successful the onslaught to 89 - up from 63 - though determination is nary mode of verifying however galore soldiers were killed. It is highly uncommon for Moscow to corroborate immoderate battlefield casualties.

The vocational assemblage was packed with conscripts astatine the clip - men who were among the 300,000 called up successful President Vladimir Putin's partial mobilisation successful September. Ammunition was besides being stored adjacent to the site, which was reduced to rubble.

Some Russian commentators and politicians person accused the subject of incompetence, saying the troops should ne'er person been fixed specified susceptible accommodation.

Pavel Gubarev, a erstwhile starring authoritative successful Russia's proxy authorization successful Donetsk, said the determination to location a ample fig of soldiers successful 1 gathering was "criminal negligence".

"If no-one is punished for this, past it volition lone get worse," helium warned.

The lawman talker of Moscow's section parliament, Andrei Medvedev, said it was predictable that the soldiers would beryllium blamed alternatively than the commandant who made the archetypal determination to enactment truthful galore of them successful 1 place.

President Putin signed a decree connected Tuesday for families of National Guard soldiers killed successful work to beryllium paid 5m roubles (£57,000; $69,000).