More than a million people have watched a video online of what looks to be a hit on Russian soldiers by an unidentified weapon. The comment, which mentioned a “death ray,” led to online rumors about the equipment depicted in the video excerpt.
It Triggers Debate Online
The footage triggered debates on social media over the potential nature of the attack’s weapon. The weapon is hard to identify, although one Twitter user speculated that it might be a Ukrainian Stugna-P anti-tank missile.
According to its maker, the Stugna-P, also known as its export version, “Skif,” is intended to take out helicopters and armored targets. Military technology expert David Hambling, however, a closer inspection of the pattern and the smoke trail that seems to guide away from the explosion could suggest that the blast may have been caused by a shaped charge such as a HEAT warhead that a Stugna may well deliver, according to a report.
Huge Attack in Russia
Since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Moscow has admitted to losing the most lives due to the New Year’s attack on a Russian military facility in Makiivka. However, experts say that aside from the tragic death toll, which is still rising, the episode has shown something even more concerning for Russia: widespread incompetence and recklessness at the core of its military command.
In the industrial town of Makiivka, in the occupied territory of Donetsk, just minutes after Ukraine rang in the new year, four US-made HIMARS rockets poured down on what appeared to be a school building housing Russian army recruits, a source posted.
In either event, the number of fatalities from a single strike announced by Moscow since the country’s ten-month invasion of Ukraine is the highest. The Russian Defense Ministry’s revelation was noteworthy in and of itself because Russia rarely discusses its casualties and, when it does, frequently downplays or completely ignores them.
