ISW about strikes on Sevastopol: Russia likely purposefully stations military targets nearby civilian areas in Crimea
This is said in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), according to Ukrinform.
The Russian MoD claimed on June 23 that Ukrainian forces launched five ATACMS missiles armed with cluster munitions against Sevastopol and that Russian forces intercepted four missiles.[16] The Russian MoD claimed that the impact from a Russian air defense interceptor caused one missile to deviate from its flight path and detonate
The Russian MoD later blamed the United States for civilian casualties in Sevastopol given that the ATACMS are a US-provided system, despite acknowledging that a Russian air defense interceptor caused the missile to deviate from its flight path and detonate.
ISW noted that they cannot independently verify if Ukrainian forces used ATACMS missiles armed with cluster munitions.
“The Russian MoD's blaming of the United States for civilian causalities is an attempt to deter the United States from providing further security assistance to Ukraine,” the report says.
As noted, Russian milbloggers widely criticized the Russian MoD and Russia’s occupation authorities in Crimea for failing to prevent the strike and sufficiently protect Russian civilians on June 23. In particular, several Russian milbloggers criticized Russian authorities for failing to detect and destroy all the missiles before they approached Sevastopol and for failing to build reinforced shelters within walking distance of the beach, specifically comparing the lack of shelters near this beach in contrast to Russia's efforts to build shelters in Belgorod region near the international border with Ukraine.
It is stressed that Russian sources criticized Russian authorities for not using air raid sirens to alert civilians to seek shelter.
“Footage and imagery indicate that Russian forces have been stationing military equipment in civilian areas in Crimea since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine,” the report says.
According to ISW, Russian authorities have irresponsibly encouraged Russian tourism to occupied Crimea during wartime while the Russian military continues to leverage the occupied peninsula as a rear staging area
“The Russian military likely purposefully stations legitimate military targets nearby civilian areas in Crimea in an effort to deter Ukrainian strikes,” the report says.
ISW recalled that Russian forces have been recorded leveraging the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and schools in occupied mainland Ukraine to shield Russian military equipment.
“Russia is likely violating its own regulations on the application of International Humanitarian Law, which states that ‘the military command shall avoid deploying military objectives in densely populated areas or in their vicinity,” the report says.
As reported by Ukrinform, on June 23, according to preliminary data, more than 120 people were injured and five more were killed by the missile attacks and air defense operations in the temporarily occupied city of Sevastopol.
