Some Russian troops have been left in tears at the orders
Russian troops involved in the invasion of Ukraine have disobeyed orders from their central command to bomb civilian areas, according to a new intelligence report.
Throughout Putin’s attack on Ukraine, Russia’s defence ministry has claimed it is only targeting military infrastructure with its missile strikes. However this has clearly not been the case, with civilian areas such as Kharkiv’s Freedom Square being hit by strikes in recent days.
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According to the Ukrainian emergency service, more than 2,000 civilians have been killed since the start of the Russian invasion. On Tuesday, five people were killed in a missile strike on a Kyiv TV tower which also hit a Holocaust memorial site.
Ukrainian emergency service says more than 2,000 civilians have been killed during the Russian invasion
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Videos show the destruction of Freedom Square in Kharkiv after an apparent rocket struck an administrative building earlier on Tuesday. https://t.co/NkTpU2Be3Z pic.twitter.com/crWrPdisEz
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Footage continues to emerge online of civilian areas of no military significance being hit by attacks and it seems like Russian troops are starting to oppose orders from above to carry these out.
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According to the Telegraph, intercepted radio messages suggest that soldiers are refusing to obey central command orders to shell Ukrainian towns.
Russian troops are said to be “operating in disarray,” with their morale rapidly falling and some “crying in combat.”
In one recording, a foot soldier is told about plans from senior command to “cover” a town with artillery fire. He reminds his commander that civilians are still in the town and need to be allowed to leave.
His commander then accepts this.
In another recording, a soldier sounds like he is in tears and can only be heard saying: “It’s slow, it’s slow.”
The radio messages have been obtained by British intelligence company ShadowBreak Intl.
Their founder, Samuel Cardillo, said that Russian forces have “no clue where they are going and how to really communicate with each other properly.”
He added that soldiers could be heard “insulting each other” in other recordings, and there was even one instance “where they shot at each other.”
Related links:
- Ukrainian soldiers adopt freezing puppy who now stands guard for them
- Piers Morgan hits out at UK’s politicians over heartbreaking images of Ukrainian children in bomb shelters
- Five Ukrainians dead after Russian missile stike on Kyiv TV tower
