Similarly, "bean bag rounds" are typically filled with lead shot, not plastic. They can fracture your skull and kill you. After I got hit with one in 2020 (thankfully in the leg), an Austin Police Department officer acted surprised there was metal inside.

Andrew Lee@xandrewleex.bsky.social · last yr.

"Rubber bullets" aren't bullets made of rubber. They're METAL bullets COATED in rubber. This is what LA police are shooting at international journalists.

I just learned that callsign "white" (Белый), the commander of the Akhmat unit who in the summer of 2022 "castrated" and murdered a Ukrainian POW, has been reported dead. Happy Vyshyvanka Day.

What a steal!

Over at Bellingcat, they're hiring a researcher/trainer who can focus on conflict research. Fully remote, with occasional travel to workshops, conferences, etc. Pay is between 60-73k USD. www.bellingcat.com/bellingcat-i...

Bellingcat is Hiring: Open Source Investigator and Trainer (Conflict) - bellingcat

Bellingcat is hiring an open source investigator and trainer (conflict). Find out more about the role and apply within.

bellingcat.com

In our latest investigation, we identify the former Wagner fighter and admin of a racist Telegram group behind a Russian fashion brand that sells clothing items glorifying far-right ideology and the Russian mercenary group Wagner. www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/03...

Unmasking Maskov: How Bellingcat Found a Man Outfitting Russian Neo-Nazis - bellingcat

H8Core is a Russian fashion brand that sells clothing items glorifying far-right ideology and the Russian mercenary group Wagner. Its products – which include t-shirts, caps and hoodies – have been cr...

bellingcat.com

Three years ago, on this day, Russia introduced a new article into its Criminal Code: the dissemination of “fake news” about the Russian army. On that very day, I left my country, and the next day, law enforcement officers came to my home in Moscow to arrest me. 1/2

you can just make out the duct tape on the rear of the drone in the CPAC photograph over the control surfaces. it's hiding the caution warnings in russian (не браться -- do not remove) that would leave no doubt as to where it came from

If only there was something else Shaheds were better known for.

Is Russia executing captured Ukrainian soldiers? The numbers have surged in recent months. In our new documentary, we show how each of the 80 deaths we've logged could potentially amount to a war crime. Watch the film here: youtu.be/eik1Lf0dPTg

Is Russia executing captured Ukrainian soldiers?

YouTube video by CIR - Centre for Information Resilience

youtu.be

"In a barren field, seven unarmed soldiers emerge from a dugout at gunpoint, arms raised above their heads. Some of them appear to trip and fall as they climb out of the ditch and are ordered to lie face down..." 🔽 80 Executions (7 min read)

Videos show alleged Ukrainian prisoners of war executed by Russian soldiers - Centre for Information Resilience

Multiple videos show the men’s last moments, as they kneel or lie on the ground with their hands on their heads or behind their backs.

info-res.org

Tyva seems to heavily favor corrupt officials over war criminals.

Aric Toler@aric.bsky.social · 2y ago

In an incredibly Russian moment, the same soldier actually ran for local office in the Tyva Republic when he returned from the war. He lost to a local man (also named Mongush), whose daughter is well-known for posting photos on her Instagram of how posh her family's life is.

In 2022, we put out a report on Bellingcat about Ochur-Suge Mongush, who joined "Akhmat." He was filmed sexually assaulting and murdering a Ukrainian POW. www.bellingcat.com/news/2022/08... A video surfaced of him complaining about not getting free land from the state. t.me/ne_zhdi_novo...

Tracking the Faceless Killers who Mutilated and Executed a Ukrainian POW - bellingcat

In a series of gruesome videos, a man wearing a cowboy hat mutilates a Ukrainian prisoner of war before murdering him. Open source evidence suggests the involvement of a Chechen-led paramilitary group...

bellingcat.com

In awe at how lame Redut medals are

In a special free edition of our Bellingchat Premium podcast, we talk about covering the invasion of Ukraine using open sources with Bellingcat researcher @michaelsheldon.bsky.social and the @nytimes.com Visual Investigations Reporter @aric.bsky.social. Listen in on the link below! 👇

An image analysis by Bellingcat shows an infamous Russian neo-Nazi with ties to the controversial paramilitary Wagner Group may be depicted in a photograph showing a man holding a severed head in Syria... www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/01...

The Man in the Matching Uniform: Investigating a Rusich Atrocity in Syria - bellingcat

A faceless man poses with a severed head in the desert. The very same uniform was worn by an infamous Russian neo-Nazi who was seen in the same area.

bellingcat.com

Read my latest for @bellingcat.com The Man in the Matching Uniform: Investigating a Rusich Atrocity in Syria www.bellingcat.com/news/2024/01...

Put it into Google Earth to get a sense of where the remaining flights may have headed.

Tracing the video from t.me/CinCAFU/648 gives a slightly better overview of what's what in a pretty chaotic radar image. From my understanding, the green track appears to be the A-50, and blue would likely be the IL-22 heading to emergency land at Anapa.

Western battery hanging out in the same spots.

Michael Sheldon@michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 3y ago

August 14

Neat.

Looks like the Stroitel S-400 unit recently moved from its usual fields to a different location to the south-west. Snow cover makes the individual components visible even in lower-resolution satellites.

Michael Sheldon@michaelsheldon.bsky.social · 3y ago

Stroitel site. Aug 22 vs 27.

The new Wagner x Stone Island collab is crazy.

Bellingcat contributor Ollie Ballinger developed a tool to estimate damage in Ukraine. He has now repurposed the tool to estimate the number of damaged buildings and the likely affected population in a given area within the Gaza Strip. www.bellingcat.com/resources/20...

A New Tool Allows Researchers to Track Damage in Gaza  - bellingcat

Using methodology originally developed and applied to the Ukraine conflict, the tool helps asses damage in the Palestinian Territory.

bellingcat.com

Over late October and early November, military cargo flights in and out of Kaliningrad were at an uncharacteristic high. Bellingcat went to investigate what these flights could be moving using SAR imagery… www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...

As Cargo Flights Leave Kaliningrad, Air Defence Systems Disappear - bellingcat

Satellite imagery shows that S-400 anti-air systems have been removed from Russia's Kaliningrad Region.

bellingcat.com

For the past week I've been monitoring Sentinel-1 imagery for S-400 sites in Kaliningrad, some of which appear to have been at least partially vacated. We have an article in the works that will go into more detail.

Equatorial Guinea claims to use a luxury yacht for military operations, but why? New Bellingcat researcher @oldpete45.bsky.social investigates the use and movement of this extravagant vessel: www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...

Public Holidays: Equatorial Guinea’s Vice President Insists Superyacht in Italian Vacation Hotspot...

The 'defence ministry' yacht was seen moored off Capri, Sardinia and a number of touristic hotspots in the Mediterranean.

bellingcat.com

"for participation in the Bakhmut meatgrinder"

In North-east Nigeria one young man’s execution-style killing is captured on camera. Here’s how Bellingcat and Reuters traced the young man in blue shorts to find out where he was killed www.bellingcat.com/news/2023/11...

The Young Man in The Blue Shorts: Execution-Style Killing Inside a Nigerian Military Barracks  - be...

Footage showed the killing of a young man at an unknown location; we tracked it down to a Military Barracks in Nigeria.

bellingcat.com