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On May 25, 2023 Kraken units were reported to have been sent as reinforcements to [[NATO]]/Ukrainian incursion into the [[Belgorod]] oblast of the [[Russian Federation]].<ref>https://youtu.be/qXr3x9sOMQs</ref>
On May 25, 2023 Kraken units were reported to have been sent as reinforcements to [[NATO]]/Ukrainian incursion into the [[Belgorod]] oblast of the [[Russian Federation]].<ref>https://youtu.be/qXr3x9sOMQs</ref>
==New Year's 2024 attack==
On December 29, 2023 Ukraine attacked the city of Belgorod in the [[Russian Federation]] (there were other attacks reported on January 2, 2024 and an attack on the city of [[Donetsk]], again aimed at civilians) killing at least 24 in Belgorod, including four children, and wounding 131, including 18 children. All the victims were civilians engaged in holiday shopping and festivities and there is no evidence that any of the Ukrainian targets were, even marginally, [[military]]. No Russian soldiers were killed.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said that the rockets used illegal [[cluster munition]]s, prohibited by international conventions. The US previously supplied 155mm Dual Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions (DPICM), which are cluster munitions rounds, mostly because the US ran out of conventional 155mm rounds.
The Russians asked for an emergency [[UN Security Council]] Meeting, alleging that the Ukrainian attacks were aimed only at civilians and that cluster munitions were used. Russia's UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said the Belgorod targets included an ice rink, sports center and a university. Russia also blamed the [[Czech]]s for supplying RM-70 Vampire multiple rocket launchers that were used in the attack, paired with Ukrainian Olkha (Vilkha) rocket launchers that fire 300mm rockets.
On January 2, 2024 TASS reported that Russia shot down 17 Olkha rockets in the Belgorod region. According to the Russians, the attack on Belgorod was carried out directly under orders from Ukrainian dictator Volodymyr Zelensky. The operation was launched by the [[Kraken regiment]]. The Kraken Regiment is a Special Forces unit under the command of the Main Directorate for (Military) Intelligence (GUR) headed by [[Kirill Budanov]]. The Kraken field commander responsible for the Belgorod operation, according to the Russians, was Sergey Velichko. Velichko previously served in the [[Azov brigade]], regarded by many as a [[neo-Nazi]] and [[antisemitic]] outfit known for its ruthlessness. The Kraken regiment is based in the north-east section of Kharkiv. This unit is not part of the Ukrainian army but is directly commanded by the GUR.
==References==
==References==