Consequences of the sudden Ukrainian strike on the Russian forces

Russian forces in Ukraine were subjected to one of the heaviest military strikes since the start of the invasion operation last February, as Moscow announced, on Sunday, the death of 63 of its soldiers in an area occupied by Moscow, while the Ukrainian side estimated the death toll in the hundreds.

The importance of this strike, in addition to the large number of victims, lies in the fact that it “took place in an area that Russia considers part of its territory, and also proved that the withdrawal from Kherson and the attempt to retreat did not prevent Ukraine from continuing the tactical attack on Russia, and thus Moscow became in a defensive position,” according to the analyst.

Kyiv and Russian nationalist bloggers said that hundreds of soldiers were killed in the attack, and the Directorate of Strategic Communications of the Armed Forces of Ukraine indicated that about 400 Russian soldiers were killed and about 300 others wounded in a vocational school building in Makivka, which is located in the Russian-controlled part of the Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine.

The Ukrainian General Staff wrote on his Facebook page: “On December 31, it destroyed up to 10 units of enemy military equipment of various types” in Makivka, indicating that losses among Russian forces were being assessed.

For its part, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that 63 of its soldiers were killed in a Ukrainian missile strike, in the Makivka area.

A spokesman for the Russian Ministry stated that 4 missiles hit a temporary deployment center of the Russian army in Makevka.

It’s worth noting that it isn’t possible, at this time, to independently verify the number of dead and wounded.

According to Reuters, “Russian officials were in a state of shock after receiving reports that large numbers of Russian forces were killed in a raid on a dormitory in which they were staying in Ukraine, as well as an ammunition depot.

A video was circulated from the site of the attack, showing debris in the smoke.

This commentator wrote on the video: “The geniuses apparently decided to store ammunition in the basement of the military unit… The only thing that would explain the collapse of the entire building”.

Another wrote: “Precise and devastating strikes like this are the main cause of Russia’s loss and Ukraine’s victory”.

The Russian Tass news agency reported, on Monday, that the Russian Senator, Grigory Karasin, called for identifying those responsible for the killing of the soldiers.

CNN quoted Daniel Bezunov, a former official in the Russian-backed Donetsk administration, as saying: “I hope those responsible will be reprimanded for the decision to use this facility… There’re enough abandoned facilities in Donbas with sturdy buildings and basements where people can be housed”.

The strike led to heavy criticism of Moscow’s army from pro-Russian military bloggers, who said the troops lacked protection.

The famous pro-Moscow Russian blogger, Igor Girkin, said that “The building was almost completely destroyed due to the explosion of ammunition stores.

Almost all military equipment, which was close to the building, was destroyed without the slightest sign of camouflage… There’re still no final figures on the number of casualties as many people are still missing”.

Another pro-Russian military blogger, Sergei Markov, said there was a great deal of laxity on the part of the Russian leadership.

According to reports received, the soldiers were targeted by Ukrainian HIMARS missiles.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense said in a statement that the Ukrainian forces fired six missiles at the site, indicating that two of them were shot down.

The Associated Press said that the strike proved that the precision weapon provided by the United States to Ukraine enabled the Ukrainian forces to hit key targets, and the agency spoke of a new setback for Russia after it was subjected in recent months to a Ukrainian counter-attack.

Ukraine uses advanced weapons, provided by the West, to help shoot down Russian missiles and drones, and to direct artillery fire into Russian-controlled parts of the country.

CNN quoted Daniel Bessonov, a former official in the Russian-backed Donetsk administration, as saying, “It seems that the high command is still unaware of the capabilities of this weapon”.

Meanwhile, Russia launched several attacks with aircraft, marking another night attack on a Ukrainian.

On Monday, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that 40 drones went to Kyiv overnight been destroyed.

On Monday, the Ukrainian Air Force Command reported that 39 Iranian-made drones were shot down, in addition to two Russian Orlan aircraft and an X-59 missile.

“We’re strong,” Ukraine’s defense ministry wrote on Twitter.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of energy terrorism as the aerial bombardment left many people in freezing temperatures.

Ukrainian officials say Moscow is using winter as a weapon in its efforts to demoralize the Ukrainian resistance.