Few details were revealed by Russia after Ukraine’s massive New Year’s Eve strike on Makiivka military quarters near Donetsk, but now new information has surfaced from Russian users on Telegram.
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Ukraine, which used HIMARS missiles to destroy the center where hundreds of mobilized men were stationed, said it killed at least 400 Russians in the strike.
For its part, the Russian Ministry of Defense had recognized the death of 89 men.
Independent users of the Telegram platform tried to understand what really happened on January 1. They met survivors of the attack in the Samara region. Several of those killed were from this oblast in southeastern European Russia.
A freelance writer specializing in military operations has collected the most disturbing details in the strike. Here are a few.
1. The military commanders had fled the scene
The mobilized men were celebrating the New Year in a disused school, but their military commanders were not present during the attack. They had left in the evening to celebrate elsewhere.
2. Lots of debris and dead
A survivor encountered by user “Samara Against The War” was dispatched the day after the attack to the site to find survivors and settle the debris. He claims to have seen “at least 300 dead”.
3. The soldiers were partying
A survivor says ‘most’ of the men were drunk. “Only those who were fasting were able to react quickly and leave the scene. After the first explosions, it was total confusion and men were shooting at each other.
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4. The list of deaths still hidden
A petition circulated widely in the Samara region, demanding that the list of those killed in Makiivka be made public. According to the latest figures, the document has collected some 50,000 signatures. The Russian Ministry of Defense refuses to do so for security reasons.
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5. Terrified locals
Hours after the strike, fear gripped local residents. British journalists traveled to Samara to get reactions, to no avail. “Nobody is going to talk. People are silent. Everyone tells their loved ones to believe what is said on state television. The mothers of these men are suffering.”
6. Prohibited phones
The ministry had blamed the men for using their cell phones to reach relatives in Russia, a prohibited practice. One of the mobilized soldiers had called his son at 10 p.m. to tell him “we were preparing the food to celebrate.” Military intelligence specialists believe that the use of cell phones enabled the Ukrainians to carry out the bombardment.
Twitter | @ChrisO_wiki