New heavy losses for Russia in the war in Ukraine – “Soldiers’ mobile phones are to blame” for the attack in Makifka

The Ministry of Defense of Russia announced that Ukrainian New Year missile attack that killed 89 Russian soldiers blamed on soldiers’ illegal use of cellphones. Moscow had previously said 63 Russian soldiers had been killed in this attack in Makiivka, Donetsk province, a stronghold of pro-Russian separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

This announcement by the Russian Ministry was made at the time when anger is growing among Russian commentators, who are increasingly critical of what they see as a lukewarm military operation in Ukraine. Anger on social media was directed mostly at Russian military commanders rather than Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has not publicly commented on the attack.

For its part, Russia’s Defense Ministry announced that four Ukrainian missiles hit a “temporary military deployment center” in Makiivka. Although an official investigation into the incident has been launched, the main reason for the attack was clearly the illegal use of mobile phones by the soldiers, the ministry pointed out.

‘500 Russian soldiers killed and wounded’ in shelling in Kherson, Kyiv says

In the meantime, the Ukrainian General Staff announced yesterday Tuesday that his forces killed and wounded about 500 Russian soldiers in an artillery attack in southern Ukraine’s Kherson region.

“The enemy’s losses are 500 dead and wounded,” the staff in Kyiv said of the attack on the village of Chulakivka, also on New Year’s Eve. The target was, according to Kyiv, military personnel and equipment.

These numbers are impossible to independently verify. Both warring sides frequently announce that they are inflicting heavy losses on their opponents in the war, now in its eleventh month.

According to the Ukrainian General Staff, Russian units were also hit in the village of Fedorivka on January 1, but the casualty count is not yet clear.

The two villages are located in the south-eastern part of the Dnieper river, in areas of Kherson under Russian occupation, as reported by the German Agency and relayed by the Athens News Agency.

Battles in Bahamut

General Valery Zaluzny, head of Ukrainian forces, said the situation on the front near the city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine was particularly difficult.

Russian forces have repeatedly tried to capture Bakhmut and the surrounding area, and in some cases are advancing literally by stepping on the corpses of their soldiers, he noted on Telegram, stressing that Ukrainian forces are resisting.

Besides, commenting on the telephone communication he had yesterday with the head of the US armed forces Mark Milley, Zaluzny pointed out that he thanked Washington for providing anti-missile systems thanks to which Kyiv destroys more and more Russian missiles.

The Ukrainian general added that he discussed with Mili and the equipment that Kyiv needs to improve its chances of winning the Russia.

“Now is the time when, together with our partners, we must strengthen our defense,” Zelensky emphasized.