Outdated Photo of Destroyed Ukrainian Tanks Resurfaces Amid Ukraine's Kursk Offensive
The Claim
Russian Ministry of Defense: The total losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region were recorded as 1,350 soldiers, 29 tanks and 23 armored personnel carriers
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Emerging story
Amid reports of Ukraine's seizure of Russia's bordering Kursk region, social media users widely spread a photo purporting to feature the Ukrainian Armed Forces' tank losses during the invasion.
Social media users circulated the photo, along with the caption, “Russian Ministry of Defense: The total losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region were recorded as 1,350 soldiers, 29 tanks and 23 armored personnel carriers.”
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar investigated the viral photo and found the claim to be misleading.
After conducting a thorough reverse image search, Misbar’s team found the photo making the rounds to be older than claimed.
Outdated Photo Shows Ukrainian Tanks Destroyed by Russia
Contrary to the circulating claim on social media, the photo was not captured in the context of Ukraine's recent advance in Russia's bordering Kursk region.
Misbar’s team traced the photo to earlier publications and discovered it had been uploaded to a Vietnamese-language website. The photo, published on June 14, 2023, depicts Leopard 2 tanks and several Ukrainian armored vehicles reportedly destroyed by Russia in Zaporizhia. The photo was credited to Reuters.
The website reported that Ukraine's "iron fist" 47th Brigade had suffered heavy losses at the hands of Russian forces.
RT, the Russian television network, also uploaded the same photo in a published article on July 12, 2023.
Russia Claims 1,350 Ukrainian Soldiers Killed, 29 Tanks Destroyed in Strikes
Russian military forces say they have prevented attempts by Ukrainian armed forces' mobile groups to penetrate deep into the Kursk region.
"Over the course of 24 hours, actions by the Battlegroup North units and arriving reserves, strikes by army aviation and unmanned aerial vehicles, and artillery fire in the areas of the settlements of Tolpino, Zhuravli, and Obshchy Kolodez prevented attempts of the enemy mobile groups to break through deep into Russian territory on armored vehicles," the Russian Defense Ministry said.
The ministry also reported the destruction of four armored personnel carriers, including three U.S.-made Stryker vehicles. Ukrainian forces reportedly lost up to 230 troops and 38 armored vehicles in the Kursk region within a day.
The Washington Post also reported, citing Russian military officials, that Russian strikes had killed over 1,350 Ukrainian soldiers and destroyed 29 tanks since the Ukrainian advance began.
Ukraine Says It Seizes 1,000 sq km in Kursk
Ukraine’s top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, announced that Ukrainian forces have seized 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of Russia’s Kursk region. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed a “worthy response” and ordered his troops to “dislodge the enemy from our territories.”
As Russia struggles to counter the unexpected assault a week after it began, Syrskyi briefed President Volodymyr Zelenskiy via video link, confirming that the offensive in Russian territory is ongoing. “We continue to conduct an offensive operation in the Kursk region. Currently, we control about 1,000 square kilometers of the territory of the Russian Federation,” Syrskyi said in a video shared on Zelenskiy’s Telegram account.
In a televised meeting with government officials, Putin stated that “one of the obvious goals of the enemy is to sow discord, strife, intimidate people, destroy the unity and cohesion of Russian society.”
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