DISINFO: Neo-Nazis targeted in missile strike on Hroza
SUMMARY
The tragedy in the village of Hroza coincided with President Zelenskyy's participation in the European Union summit in Spain, where he discussed the importance of continued support for Kyiv. The Ukrainians themselves have expressed concerns about their safety in light of not only Ukrainian air defense capabilities but also foreign visits and guests received by President Zelenskyy.
At the time of the strike, a funeral was taking place in the area, which included mourners associated with high-ranking Ukrainian nationalists. Many of his neo-Nazi accomplices took part. It is worth noting that in photographs circulated on social media shortly after the strike, the majority of the casualties appeared to be males of military age.
We have seen such situations before. Kyiv wrung its hands over those killed as a result of attacks on hotels, hostels, cafes, shops, etc., and then a large number of obituaries of military and foreign mercenaries appeared.
RESPONSE
Disinformation concerning events on 6 October, when Russia targeted a cafe and a shop in the village of Hroza, near the eastern Ukrainian city of Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region. According to the Ukrainian officials the attack was carried out with an Iskander ballistic missile, killing over 50 people, including a child.
Andrei Kozyr, whose funeral was taking place in Hroza when it was hit by a Russian missile, was not a “high-ranking nationalist”, as Russian pro-Kremlin media attempts portray him.
He lived and worked in Poland, moving in with his daughter, who had married a Polish citizen. Soon after the start of the war, Kozyr, together with his son Denis, returned to Ukraine and volunteered for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Andrei Kozyr fought for only three days and was wounded in the neck, which turned out to be fatal. He was buried in a military cemetery in the Dnipro region, since his native village of Hroza was under Russian occupation at that time. In autumn of 2023, his son Denis, decided to rebury him in his native village. The Russian missile strike killed Andrei Kozyr's widow Alina, daughter Elizaveta, son Denis, his wife Nina and other relatives.
Channel 24 website published the list of the victims. It contains 58 names, although only 53 victims were officially reported by 10 October 2023; Identification efforts are ongoing and several people are still reported missing. Several people could only be identified through DNA testing. 36 people among the victims are women, 11 are men over 60 years old, and there is a 8 year old child, none of whom are men of military age. The Insider published photos of some of the victims.
See more cases on Russia's war crimes in Ukraine. Russia uses accusations of 'Nazism' to destroy Ukraine, including targeting civilians, women and children amid full-scale invasion of Ukraine that started in 2022. Ukrainians are dehumanised up to being called 'animals' by pro-Kremlin media. President Putin has also made an outlandish claim that the Jewish origin of Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a cover for his Nazism.
This disinformation claim was broadcast on the date mentioned above. Due to the EU decisions to temporarily restrict the spread and dissemination of RT, Sputnik and other instruments used to manipulate information and promote disinformation about the invasion of Ukraine inside the EU, access to the link may not work inside the EU.