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By Brendan Cole
Senior Reporter
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Footage has been shared purportedly showing the aftermath of a Ukrainian HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) strike on a Russian battalion.
Pro-Ukrainian news outlet NEXTA posted a clip of a group of burnt-out vehicles and wrote that Russian mobilized soldiers "were subject to Ukrainian HIMARS strikes" with more than 100 personnel left "dead or wounded."
Newsweek has not been able to independently verify the veracity of the footage and has contacted the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.
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The use of HIMARS has given Ukraine extra capability on the battlefield, with Kyiv frequently releasing footage of them striking Russian targets. Offering an even greater range are the U.S.-supplied Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS), which have already been used for strikes by Kyiv.
NEXTA said the troops were from Chuvashia, a republic in European Russia which is the homeland of the Chuvash people, a Turkic ethnic group.
The Telegram channel of Serditia Chuvashia, which reports news about the republic, posted a clip of vehicles on fire and smoke billowing into the air. The incident was also reported by Ukraine's Defense Ministry.
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"The Chuvash mobilized battalion was wiped out," the post said, "large losses in killed and wounded." It said that the 1st battalion of the 1251st Motorized Rifle Regiment, commanded by a native of the republic, Vladislav Matuzas, had come under fire from HIMARS on Sunday.
The post said that the convoy included vehicles produced by KAMAZ and UAZ, which are Russian manufacturers of commercial vehicles, and and while there is no confirmed information about losses, there were "up to 120 people killed and wounded, 10 burned vehicles."
"It has also been confirmed that the Atal battalion was almost completely destroyed," the post added, without specifying the location.
In July 2022, the head of the Chuvash Republic, Oleg Nikolaev, announced the formation of the battalion for which volunteers would get a lump sum payment of 200,000 rubles ($2,158) upon enlisting.
"Will Oleg Nikolaev declare a day of mourning for those killed?" the Telegram post on Serditia Chuvashia said. "This is unlikely as he is busy presenting certificates," it added, with a link to a video of awards being given out to transport workers.
In reporting the strike, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said that earlier this month, Kyiv's military had used HIMARS to strike and kill Russian operators of ZALA 421-16E2 drones in the south of the country.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Monday they had "successfully hit" a strategic object of the air defense system in the west of Crimea, which social media users said was the first time HIMARS had been used on the occupied peninsula.
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