The Russian Embassy in Ireland has released a statement to Irish media, claiming that the bombing of a maternity hospital in Ukraine was a “hoax, carefully staged by the Ukrainian nationalists”.
In a statement issued today, the Russian Embassy said the incident was created by “Ukrainian propaganda” and that the Russian Armed Forces are “not fighting the Ukrainian people”.
“In response to the recent press reports as well as statements by the Irish officials, alleging that the Russian military has bombed the maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, the Embassy wishes to inform of the following,” the statement said.
“The Russian Armed Forces are following strict orders not to target any civilian infrastructure – schools, hospitals, kindergartens.
“The Russian Armed Forces are not fighting the Ukrainian people, they are seeking to deny the regime in Kyiv any military capability to inflict more suffering on the people of Donetsk and Lugansk Republics.
“The story about Mariupol is a despicable hoax, carefully staged by the Ukrainian nationalists using the well-known Ukrainian Instagram beauty blogger Marianna Podgurskaya, who is indeed pregnant.”
Horrifying pictures emerged on Wednesday of victims being evacuated from the medical centre after a bombardment by Russian forces in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol.
On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia’s Mariupol strike on March 9 trapped children and others under debris.
“A children’s hospital. A maternity hospital,” he said in his nightly video address, switching to Russian to express horror at the strike.
“What kind of country is this, the Russian Federation, which is afraid of hospitals, afraid of maternity hospitals, and destroys them?
Today’s statement from the Russian Embassy in Ireland also accuses a beauty blogger pictured wounded in the assault of faking her injuries and creating “staged” photos to show “allegedly wounded pregnant women”.
“She was spotted in different photos and using different make-up in different staged-up situations. In this particular instance she was used for making a staged photo to show allegedly wounded pregnant woman with the hospital at the background to create an impression that she is a victim of shelling,” the statement continued.
“The fact is that this particular hospital number 1 in the city of Mariupol has been abandoned in the end of February when the neo-Nazi battalion “Azov” pushed out all the patients and the staff to create their stronghold and firing positions there.”
Ten days before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, The Russian Ambassador to Ireland Yuriy Filatov insisted that his country had no plans to invade Ukraine and that troops would be pulled back from the country’s borders. He described the idea of Russia invading Ukraine as “insane”.
He also insisted the soldiers who were in place at the Ukrainian border on February 15 were there as part of a training exercise.
Mr. Filatov told RTÉ’s Prime Time program that his country has no plans and no “reason” to invade Ukraine.
“We don’t have any political, military, economic, or any other reason to do that. The whole idea is insane,” he said.
The statement went on to say that the “goal of this campaign was to create an image that Russia is waging “atrocious” war against civilians.”
“The idea from the onset was to create conditions for the provocation in case they come under fire to allege that the Russian military and DPR militia are targeting the hospital. On the 7th of March, 2 days prior to the incident, the Russian permanent mission at the UN has informed that there is evidence of a plan by battalion “Azov” to stage exactly this kind of provocation in Mariupol,” he said.
“This is not an isolated action by Ukrainian propaganda, supported by the Western media. One can point to similar stories about the shelling of the city of Kharkiv, alleged plans of the Russian military to use chemical weapons, the alleged bombing of the Chernobyl NPP and many others.”
News credit: Independent.ie