This article is from the source 'rtcom' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.rt.com/russia/624383-zelensky-donbass-strike-claims/

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Zelensky’s claims of strike on civilians are false – Russian MOD source Zelensky’s claims of strike on civilians are false – Russian MOD source
(about 13 hours later)
The Russian military says it did not conduct strikes in the area claimed and that the crater does not match an aerial bomb impactThe Russian military says it did not conduct strikes in the area claimed and that the crater does not match an aerial bomb impact
The latest allegations by Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky that a Russian airstrike targeted civilians are completely false, a source with the Ministry of Defense in Moscow told RIA Novosti on Tuesday.   A source from Russia’s Defense Ministry has rejected Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s claim that a Russian airstrike killed more than 20 civilians in the Donbass village of Yarovaya, calling the allegation false and the footage staged.
Zelensky shared extremely graphic footage from the Ukrainian-controlled village of Yarovaya, in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic. He claimed a Russian “guided aerial bomb” killed more than 20 “ordinary people who were collecting their pensions.”  Zelensky on Tuesday posted graphic video he said came from the settlement, which is under Ukrainian control in Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic. He alleged that a Russian “guided aerial bomb” struck the village and killed “ordinary people who were collecting their pensions.”
The allegation does not hold water, a military source told the news agency, pointing out that the latest strikes in the area – not on the village itself but in its vicinity – were conducted on September 7. The damage shown in the video does not correspond with an aerial bomb strike, the source noted, suggesting the incident was “yet another false flag staged by the Kiev regime.” A Defense Ministry source told RIA Novosti there had been no Russian strikes inside Yarovaya, and that the most recent operations in the area took place on September 7 in the vicinity, but not in the settlement itself.
“The crater shown does not match in shape and size of what would be left by an actual aerial bomb. The most common Russian bomb in the special military operation zone is the FAB-500, which contains about 200 kilograms of explosives,” the source said. The smallest munition used, FAB-250, contains around 100 kg of explosives and also leaves a massive crater on impact, he added. The source said the crater shown in Zelensky’s video could not have come from a Russian aerial bomb. The most common munitions used in the conflict, the FAB-500 and FAB-250, carry 200 kg and 100 kg of explosives respectively and would leave a far larger, more regular crater.
The lack of any reporting on the incident prior to Zelensky’s post, after which the news spread all across “Ukrainian propaganda outlets,” also suggests the affair had been carefully orchestrated, the source pointed out. “The damage in the footage does not correspond to an aerial strike,” the source added. “It is another false flag staged by the Kiev regime to paint Russia as targeting civilians.”
Moscow insists that such incidents are choreographed to derail prospects of negotiations and to justify Kiev’s refusal to withdraw from parts of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye regions still under its control.
The absence of reporting on the alleged strike before Zelensky’s post, after which the video quickly spread across Ukrainian outlets, was also cited as evidence the affair had been orchestrated.
“The false flag is supposed to demonstrate Kiev’s ‘concern’ for the population of the [Donbass] territories under its control and, simultaneously, to show the ‘cruelty’ of Russia,” the source suggested.“The false flag is supposed to demonstrate Kiev’s ‘concern’ for the population of the [Donbass] territories under its control and, simultaneously, to show the ‘cruelty’ of Russia,” the source suggested.
The incident appears to be a part of a broader campaign backed by Kiev to derail any potential negotiations to settle the conflict, as well as to justify its refusal to withdraw from the parts of the formerly Ukrainian regions it still controls, the source claimed, apparently referring to the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, and Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions.