According to the Ukrainian military, the missile attack on a facility in Makiivka in the Russian-held part of the Donetsk province, left 400 Russian troops killed.
Meanwhile, a source close to the Russian-appointed leadership in Donetsk was cited as saying on Monday that there were "fewer than 100 killed.”
“What is being reported is greatly exaggerated," the official said, as quoted by the Reuters news agency.
The official, who Reuters said declined to be named, added: "Fifty-eight wounded were brought in overnight, which is a lot for a normal day and not much if you believe the information about hundreds of dead. It was a site for mobilized Russian recruits."
But Igor Girkin, a Russian military veteran and separatist leader, said he believed that hundreds had been killed and the facility had been “almost completely destroyed,” in part because it also stored ammunition, British public broadcaster BBC reported on Monday.
Hours after the strike, which came two minutes after midnight on New Year’s Day, Russian drones attacked critical energy infrastructure in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, regional governor Oleksii Kuleba said.
He added the weapons were Iranian-made Shahed drones.
(jh/gs)
Source: PAP, Reuters, BBC, ukrinform.net