Footage shows a Grad system being taken out, reportedly in Kharkov Region
A clip showing a Russian high-precision drone strike against a Ukrainian Soviet-made BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher has emerged on social media.
The weapon system was discovered by Russian troops somewhere in Ukraine’s Kharkov Region, according to the Telegram channel that published the clip. Moscow’s forces have been engaged in offensive operations in the region in recent days. In the video, a drone operator can be seen pinpointing the rocket launcher’s location and locking his kamikaze UAV on the target before striking it.
The clip ends with the Grad going up in flames. The strike resulted in a massive explosion since the launcher was apparently fully loaded. According to some media reports, Russian troops in Kharkov Region have been successfully using kamikaze Lancet drones to isolate Ukrainian forces in the area and strip them of fire support by specifically targeting artillery and missile launchers.
The Russian Defense Ministry has not commented on the reports or provided details about the tactics used during the operation. The ministry also did not list the Grad system among the losses suffered by Kiev’s forces over the past 24 hours.
The ministry did report in its daily briefing on Telegram that Russian forces continue to advance in Kharkov Region, adding that the village of Bugrovatka has become the latest settlement to fall under Russian control in the area. Over the past 24 hours, Kiev’s troops lost more than 130 soldiers, as well as two armored vehicles, a Czech-made Vampire multiple rocket launcher, a German-made Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft gun, and several artillery pieces in the northeastern Ukrainian region alone, the statement said.
Kiev’s military intelligence chief, Kirill Budanov, recently admitted that the situation is “on the edge.”“Every hour this situation moves toward critical,” he told the New York Times on Monday.
Russian troops have seized numerous villages in the northern part of Kharkov Region since the start of their offensive last week. The area has been used by Kiev for months to launch cross-border attacks into Russia’s Belgorod Region.
