It seems that the Russian website is full of misinformation. While Ukraine and other world media reported on residential shootings, Russia insisted Putin’s troops would not attack residential areas. But footage from Ukraine speaks against them. On Russian news sites, readers will also find out, for example, that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has left the country, but a video shot in Kiev refutes this claim.

The invasion of Ukraine was described as a significant success on Russian news sites. They pointed out, for example, that the Russian army had destroyed more than 800 military targets. The fact that the occupation of Kiev did not go according to plan, but for some reason they were not mentioned. According to security experts, Vladimir Putin certainly did not anticipate such a development.

The word war is completely unheard of on the Russian news. The term “special military operations to protect the Donbao Republic” continues to be used. Russia thus still insists that this is a peacekeeping mission. “Russia never started a war, it was Russia that ended it,” wrote the Rossiyskaya Gazeta website, referring to statements by members of the Russian Military Historical Society.

Attacks in residential areas

Other messages are carried in this spirit. The Interfax news agency and other media stressed on Saturday that Russian troops would not attack civilians. “Russian armed forces did not attack residential areas in Ukrainian cities,” Interfax said in an official Defense Ministry statement.

But footage from Ukraine suggests otherwise. For example, photos that capture the trigger caused by a rocket in the village of Borodyanka near Kiev. This is an area with family homes, one of which was hit by a bullet. Three people died in the rubble.

In the Borough of Kiev, a number of companions including a friendly building, 3 people. #UkraineUnderAttack #Ukraine #Ukraine War #StopPutin #StandWithUkriane pic.twitter.com/EMFSJ1HAfj

– mariana (@mariana_pmv) February 26, 2022

In Kiev, a tall building struck again on Saturday. The incident was captured in a video that circulated around the world as evidence that the Ukrainian capital was again under fire. Fortunately, no one died in the building, as most of the residents were hiding in the subway and other underground shelters.

We can read on Russian news sites that the Ministry of Defense denied the attack, stating that the house was clearly hit not by Russia but by a Ukrainian missile. “Clearly, the rocket navigation system has failed and hit the corner of the residential building,” Interfax said, citing a ministry spokesman.

Russian loss

On the other hand, what no one on Russian websites will read is a loss on their part. The Ukrainian government has officially asked the Red Cross to arrange the bodies of the dead Russian soldiers. There should be thousands of them. And since there was no reaction from the Russian side, the Ukrainian Foundation of Return asked soldiers and surviving civilians to take pictures of dead soldiers lying in fields or on roads. “Russia hides their losses from their citizens. We have to show the truth,” the foundation said.

Some of these photos and videos were published on the Telegram service on the Ukrainian Witness profile, but the editors of TN.cz will not share them due to their harsh nature.

Zelensk escape

An example of disinformation that speaks for itself is the news that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky left the country and fled to the West. In response, Zelensky published a video confirming that he was still in Kiev.

“There are many false rumors circulating that I have asked our soldiers to surrender and that I am fleeing. This is not true. I am here. We will not lay down our weapons, we will defend our country,” he said. in one of the videos.

Zelenský video from Kiev (26 February 2022):

Zelenský video from Kiev (25 February 2022):

However, RIA Novosti’s agency published an article on Saturday morning, claiming that Zelenskyj had left Kyiv in a hurry on Friday and is currently in Lviv. “He fled to the city of Lviv, where he and his assistants arranged housing,” said the chairman of the Russian State Duma. Vyacheslav Volodin.

He noted RIA Novosti Zelenský, but said: “Zelensky was not in the Ukrainian capital yesterday (Friday) and the video he posted on social media was pre-recorded.”

Pressure on independent media

There are reports that Russia’s federal office Roskomnadzor has asked several Russian news sites, such as Novaya Gazeta or MediaZona, to remove articles and other content that shows Russia in a different way from the official authorities. He also objected to the use of terms such as war, invasion or assault.

The editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazera, Dmitry Muratov, according to the Ukrainian daily ukraine truth confirmed that he had accepted this invitation. If he doesn’t delete the content, his website will be banned from any publication.

TN.cz