These images purport to show Russian kamikaze drones hitting Ukrainian military targets.
The footage begins by showing one of the drones being deployed, with at least two soldiers seen setting up a ramp from which to launch it and preparing to send it on its mission.
They can then be seen placing it on the ramp and launching it into the sky. The images then cut to what appears to be the drone hitting a target on the ground.
The images were obtained from the Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Friday, 28th October, along with a statement claiming: “The Russian Defense Ministry has published footage of the preparation, launch and use of a small-sized strike unmanned aerial vehicle in the area of the special military operation.
“The units of the Airborne Forces discovered shelters for the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“After launching, the UAV of the Airborne Forces patrolled in the air, fixed the target, performed a dive and struck at the AFU facility, destroying it.”
We have not been able to independently verify the claims or the footage.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February in what the Kremlin is still calling a “special military operation”. Today marks the 247th day of the war.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between 24th February and 28th October, Russia had lost about 69,700 personnel, 2,640 tanks, 5,378 armoured combat vehicles, 1,698 artillery units, 379 multiple launch rocket systems, 192 air defence systems, 272 warplanes, 251 helicopters, 1,401 drones, 351 cruise missiles, 16 warships, 4,088 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 151 units of special equipment.
Russia has claimed that its casualties have been much lower but provides infrequent updates on its latest figures.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the world faces “probably the most dangerous” decade since World War II.
Putin said: “We are at a historical frontier. Ahead is probably the most dangerous, unpredictable and at the same time important decade since the end of World War II.”
The Russian leader made the comments during a long speech at the annual Valdai Discussion Club, a forum of Russian specialists, on Thursday, 27th October, during which he accused the West of using nuclear blackmail against Russia and attempted to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Putin also said that the West’s “undivided dominance” over world affairs was coming to an end.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Russia has launched over 30 drone attacks on Ukraine in the last two days. He also added that in total, Moscow has carried out some 4,500 missile strikes and over 8,000 air raids since the beginning of the invasion in February.
Speaking from the capital Kyiv and standing beside what appeared to be a downed Iranian Shahed drone, Zelensky vowed to “clip the wings” of Moscow’s air power.
The United States and its allies have claimed that Iran is supplying large numbers of combat drones to Russia but Moscow and Tehran have so far denied this.
Speaking in the Canadian capital Ottawa, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Russia’s aggressive use of drones “appalling”. He said that Russia was using the devices to “kill Ukrainian civilians and destroy the infrastructure they rely on for electricity, for water, for heat”.
Ukrainians living in the capital Kyiv and the surrounding area have been informed of a “sharp deterioration” in the region’s electricity supply after further Russian strikes. A new timetable for scheduled blackouts will be introduced in the capital in the coming days.
Ksenia Sobchak, a Russian journalist and Putin’s rumoured goddaughter, has reportedly fled to Lithuania, according to intelligence services in Vilnius. This is after police in Moscow reportedly raided one of her homes. She is the daughter of a former Mayor of St Petersburg, Anatoly Sobchak, who Putin had previously described as his mentor.
