Russia-Ukraine war: Attack kills dozens of Russian soldiers, Moscow says - NPR

This photograph shows the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) firing during exercises successful the Philippines. Russia accused Ukraine of utilizing the aforesaid weapons to transportation retired the attack. Jam Sta Rosa/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption

Jam Sta Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

This photograph shows the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) firing during exercises successful the Philippines. Russia accused Ukraine of utilizing the aforesaid weapons to transportation retired the attack.

Jam Sta Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

Ukraine's subject is taking recognition for a blast that whitethorn person killed hundreds of Russian conscripts successful Ukraine's acold eastbound successful the archetypal minutes of the caller year. Russia's Defense Ministry corroborated the reports connected Monday, but lone claimed 63 deaths.

Officials successful the alleged "Donetsk People's Republic," a portion of Ukraine that Russia illegally annexed successful September, expressed nationalist outrage astatine the attack, placing blasted connected Moscow for grouping truthful galore soldiers successful 1 place.

Both sides accidental the onslaught took spot successful Makiivka, a suburb eastbound of Donetsk, a large Ukrainian metropolis that has been nether Russian power since 2014, but the details of what precisely happened are murky. Western journalists are incapable to participate the area, and truthful beryllium connected some Russian and Ukrainian sources for information.

The onslaught perchance sets a grounds for Russian casualties successful a azygous onslaught successful the warfare truthful far.

Local societal media channels successful the Donetsk portion reported monolithic explosions precisely astatine midnight connected New Year's Day. By Sunday afternoon, videos of the demolition surfaced, including 1 that appeared to amusement dormant bodies and a heap of rubble wherever a vocational schoolhouse erstwhile stood. Internet sleuths soon geolocated and verified the videos.

"The schoolhouse was a known Russian garrison, going arsenic acold backmost arsenic 2014," Oleh Zhdanov, a apical Ukrainian subject analyst, tells NPR.

"[Since February], astir Russian soldiers were scattered crossed the front, but erstwhile Ukraine noticed reservists bunching unneurotic successful 1 spot they took action," Zhdanov added.

On the evening of New Year's Day, Ukraine's Strategic Command posted a sarcastic note connected its authoritative Telegram transmission astir "Santa stuffing assemblage bags with 400 corpses."

Russia makes a uncommon admittance of battlefield losses

The quality triggered rage among pro-Russian leaders successful the breakaway region.

"I can't blasted Ukraine. The existent slayer is the son-of-a-b**** who made our fighters into casual targets," posted Alexey Sukonkin, an influential blogger successful Russian-occupied Ukraine.

Russia's state-run TASS quality bureau blamed soldiers' cellphone information for tipping disconnected their barracks' determination to the Ukrainians.

Igor Girkin, the erstwhile defence curate for the separatist Donetsk region, shared akin sentiments online, and claimed to person visited the onslaught site.

"The fig of dormant and wounded goes to galore hundreds," helium said.

Finally, connected Monday, Russia's Defense Ministry issued a statement accusing Ukraine of utilizing American-supplied HIMARS rockets to transportation retired the attack. The nationalist connection made a uncommon admittance of battlefield losses.

Ukraine's General Staff followed the Russian announcement by confirming the attack, though without specifying the suspected fig of casualties oregon weapons used.

"It takes a agelong clip to find retired however galore radical dice from an onslaught similar this," said Zhdanov. "But we tin person a wide sense."

Attacks specified arsenic this volition apt stoke unrest successful Russia

The evident onslaught connected Makiivka came conscionable days aft Ukraine's defence minister, Oleksii Reznikov, encouraged draft-age Russian men to godforsaken oregon protestation against the war.

"As this warfare drags on, your idiosyncratic chances of dying volition increase," helium said.

As Russian media began to study connected the destruction, Russian citizens who claimed to person conscripted relatives stationed successful Makiivka demanded to cognize if they were among the dead.

Military expert Oleh Zhdanov says strikes similar this volition apt proceed to stoke unrest wrong Russia, wherever anti-draft demonstrations took spot past summer.

"Surely determination volition beryllium another mobilization soon," says Zhdanov, "so the Russians are downplaying their losses due to the fact that they're acrophobic of wide resistance."