Military intelligence: Russia gives Hamas weapons captured in Ukraine to discredit Kyiv
Russia has transferred Western-made weapons captured in Ukraine to the extremist organization Hamas fighting against Israel in an effort to discredit Kyiv, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) reported on Oct. 9.
Moscow plans to falsely accuse the Ukrainian military of selling weaponry provided by the U.S. and EU to Hamas, according to HUR.
"As part of the Kremlin's disinformation campaign, these fakes should form the basis of a number of 'revealing articles' and 'investigations' in Western media," the HUR wrote.
According to the intelligence agency, Russian special services plan to use Ruslan Syrovyi, a senior lieutenant from the Ukrainian Border Service who has committed treason and fled to Moscow, as a "source" for this campaign.
"Another provocation by the enemy aims to discredit the Armed Forces of Ukraine and make Western partners cease military aid to our country," HUR said.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, the Kremlin aims to exploit Hamas' offensive against Israel to divert Western support and attention away from Ukraine.
Following Hamas' large-scale attacks on Israeli territory on Oct. 7, Russian voices amplified messages blaming Western countries for neglecting conflicts in the Middle East in favor of supporting Ukraine.
Read also: Blinken: Hamas’ attack on Israel not attempt to take advantage of West’s focus on Ukraine
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