FACT CHECK: No, Ukraine Did Not Destroy Russian Warships With HIMARS
A video shared on Facebook claims Ukraine destroyed a port filled with Russian warships with High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS).
Verdict: False
There is no evidence for this claim.
Fact Check:
Ukraine’s offensive has slowed, with Kyiv looking to preserve manpower while making slow territorial gains, according to EuroNews. Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Malyar claimed that Ukrainian forces have retaken 37.4 square kilometers in the last week, the outlet reported.
The Facebook video, viewed more than 39,000 times, claims that Ukraine destroyed a port of Russian warships with HIMARS. The Facebook video’s caption reads, “All Destroyed! Port of Russian Warships Was Blown Up by Hundreds of US HIMARS Missiles!”
There is no evidence for this claim. If Ukraine had destroyed Russian warships with HIMARS, media outlets would have covered it, yet none have. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense has claimed the destruction of 18 Russian naval vessels as of July 6, a number that has not changed for months.
Check Your Fact also reviewed databases of Russian naval losses from WarSpotting and Oryx. These databases did not show an increase in destroyed Russian vessels nor indicate that several were destroyed by HIMARS.
There is also a lack of visual evidence. Open-source intelligence accounts often publish footage of HIMARS destroying equipment, such as this recent video of HIMARS fire destroying several Russian artillery units. (RELATED: Did 27,000 Russians Surrender In Ukraine?)
Ukrainian forces continue to conduct highly effective done-spotted HIMARS counterbattery fire on Russian artillery units, seen here destroying 4x Bm-21 Grad, 1x 2A65 Msta-B SPH and associated tow vehicle, and 1x 2S7 Pion SPC. pic.twitter.com/M8jGpWxwhd
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) July 4, 2023
Misinformation around the Russian invasion of Ukraine is not new. Check Your Fact recently debunked a video claiming that 45,000 Ukrainian troops reached Melitopol.