So-Called DPR Says It Destroyed Ukrainian Weaponry And Manpower With Anti-Tank Guided Missiles

The pro-Russian Donetsk People's Republic has said that it has destroyed Ukrainian weaponry and manpower using anti-tank guided missiles.

The footage purports to show the Ukrainian forces being targeted and hit by the so-called Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).

The images were obtained from the People's Militia of the DPR on Saturday, 3rd December, along with a statement claiming: "Scouts of the 3rd Special Forces Battalion destroyed an SPG-9 crew and a group of enemy manpower in the Vodiane area.

"Scouts of the 3rd Guards Separate Special Purpose Battalion of the 1st Army Corps, thanks to the use of thermal imagers, successfully discovered the SPG-9 crew at night, which was firing in the direction of the positions of our troops and an enemy infantry group. Both targets were destroyed with ATGMs [anti-tank guided missiles]."

The images were reportedly filmed in the village of Vodiane, which is located in the Mariupol district in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

We have not been able to independently verify the claims or the footage.

The SPG-9 'Kopyo' (Spear) is a tripod-mounted man-portable, 73-millimetre calibre recoilless gun originally developed by the Soviet Union in the early 1960s.

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February in what the Kremlin is still calling a "special military operation". Today marks the 285th day of the war.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February and 5th December, Russia had lost about 91,690 personnel, 2,924 tanks, 5,900 armoured combat vehicles, 1,914 artillery units, 395 multiple launch rocket systems, 211 air defence systems, 281 warplanes, 264 helicopters, 1,582 drones, 531 cruise missiles, 16 warships, 4,497 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 163 units of special equipment.

Russia has claimed that its casualties have been much lower but provides infrequent updates on its latest figures.

Avril Haines, the United States Director of National Intelligence, has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is now “better informed” about the challenges his army is facing in Ukraine.

It had previously been assessed that Putin was being shielded by his inner circle from the worst news about his troops’ performance in Ukraine.

Haines said that Putin was “becoming more informed of the challenges that the military faces.”

Haines also said that there will likely be a “reduced tempo” in fighting over the winter, adding: “Most of the fighting right now around Bakhmut and the Donetsk area has slowed down with the withdrawal of Russia from the western Kherson area to the east of the river. And we expect that’s likely to be what we see in the coming months.”

There is ongoing heavy fighting near the key town of Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, where the Russian military has struggled for the last six months to make any substantial progress.

Ukrainian forces are also said to be making headway on the east bank of the Dnipro River after taking control of the city of Kherson.

Russia has also been intensifying its artillery attacks on the Kherson region since abandoning it and withdrawing to the east bank of the river.

There is reportedly a draft resolution circulating at the United Nations proposing a Nuremberg-style tribunal to hold Moscow to account for its crimes in Ukraine.

Rob Malley, the US special envoy on Iran, has said that the Islamic Republic has locked itself into a “vicious cycle” regarding the ongoing protests gripping the country and over providing Russia with weapons.

He said: “The more Iran represses, the more there will be sanctions; the more there are sanctions, the more Iran feels isolated.”

Malley added: “The more isolated they feel, the more they turn to Russia; the more they turn to Russia, the more sanctions there will be, the more the climate deteriorates, the less likely there will be nuclear diplomacy. So it is true right now the vicious cycles are all self-reinforcing.”

Some 500 localities in Ukraine remained without electricity on Sunday after weeks of Russian missile strikes targeting the country’s power grid, according to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry.