A set of mysterious symbols have emerged on various buildings in Kyiv, sparking fears that Russian saboteurs may be marking out targets for a major aerial assault.
Images of the symbols circulated on social media after Ukraine’s State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection (DSSZZI) on Friday posted a warning on social media encouraging residents to cover them up.
Red and orange crosshairs have been painted onto various structures in the capital, including several high-rise buildings, with certain symbols only visible under UV light.
‘City officials are asking residents of high-rise buildings who have access to the roof to urgently check the rooftops for symbols,’ the post read.
‘If any symbols are found, please cover them up with dirt or something else.’
Fears that the symbols could in fact be target indicators were confirmed over the weekend when Mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko declared: ‘City officials are urging citizens to immediately report tagged locations, submit photos to law enforcement, and report suspects who may be involved in tagging.’
‘Labels are placed to adjust the fire of the occupying forces of the Russian Federation.’
It comes amid rising concerns that Kyiv could soon come under heavy attack, after the Kremlin this morning warned civilians to leave the city via a ‘safe highway’ to the south-west.
Russia used similar tactics during its intervention in Syria, in which military leaders told civilians to leave cities along a safe route before conducting heavy bombing campaigns while fighting alongside Bashar al-Assad.
Kyiv, along with the cities of Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, and Chernihiv, have already been hit by Russian artillery fire.
A set of mysterious symbols have emerged on various buildings in Kyiv, sparking fears that Russian saboteurs may be marking out targets for a major aerial assault. Images purporting to show the symbols are circulating on social media
Red and orange crosshairs have reportedly been painted onto various structures in the capital, with Kyiv’s mayor and government social media accounts calling on citizens to cover them up
It comes amid rising concerns that Kyiv could soon come under heavy attack, after the Kremlin this morning warned civilians to leave the city via a ‘safe route’ to the south-west (pictured: the moment after a missile struck a residential building in Kyiv over the weekend)
Fears that the symbols could in fact be target indicators were confirmed over the weekend when Mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko declared: ‘City officials are urging citizens to immediately report tagged locations, submit photos to law enforcement, and report suspects who may be involved in tagging.’ ‘Labels are placed to adjust the fire of the occupying forces of the Russian Federation’
The use of target indicators (TIs) for aerial assaults was pioneered primarily by the RAF and the German Luftwaffe in World War II.
Target-marking squadrons would perform a flyover of any intended targets and drop bomb casings filled with flares, showering the area with bright sparks and providing a sighted target for oncoming bombers.
Now, the Ukrainian military has reportedly seized several silent, light-emitting beacons from several positions around the capital, which are believed to be TIs for Russian aircraft or missiles.
These lights can be used as TIs to lead missiles to their targets with pinpoint accuracy and help them to avoid obstacles or enemy fire.
Ukraine’s service of special communications and information protection (DSSZZI) on Friday posted a warning about the symbols. ‘City officials are asking residents of high-rise buildings who have access to the roof to urgently check the rooftops for symbols,’ the post read. ‘If any symbols are found, please cover them up with dirt or something else’
The painted crosshairs meanwhile represent a more old-fashioned approach to target indication – though they are less susceptible to sabotage, jamming and hacking unlike more technologically advanced methods.
A video shared on Twitter purported to show one of the transmitting devices captured by Ukrainian forces, which flashed intermittently with a sharp green light.
The caption read: ‘Footage of the device that is used by Russian saboteur units in Ukraine. The light-emitting object has been retrieved by Ukrainian forces.
‘These are beacons that are used for either airstrikes, artillery strikes, or for the landing of Russian troops.’
Now, the Ukrainian military has reportedly seized several silent, light-emitting beacons from several positions around the capital, which are believed to be TIs for Russian aircraft or missiles. The painted crosshairs meanwhile represent a more old-fashioned approach to target indication – though they are less susceptible to sabotage, jamming and hacking unlike more technologically advanced methods
Plumes of smoke rise from a building, which was caused by a cruise missile according to local media, in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 27, 2022
Other mysterious markings are seemingly only visible under UV light, while other more high-tech devices which emit bursts of light have been seized by the Ukrainian military
Though Russia has executed a number of air and missile strikes on key strategic locations across Ukraine, there were very few civilian casualties in the first days of the invasion.
That changed over the weekend when fighting broke out in the streets of several Ukrainian cities, while one Russian missile caused severe damage to a residential high-rise in the Ukrainian capital on Sunday.
Now dozens of civilians have been killed and hundreds wounded after Russian rocket artillery opened fire on Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, according to Ukrainian officials.
Kharkiv, which has witnessed some of the heaviest fighting of the war so far, was hit by rockets fired from Russian positions in the early hours of this morning – with video showing an area around a shopping centre in the Serpnia area blanketed by explosions.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second city, came under heavy bombardment from indiscriminate Russian artillery and may have been hit by so-called ‘cluster’ munitions, causing ‘dozens’ of casualties
This photograph shows a view of a school destroyed as a result of fight not far from the center of Ukrainian city of Kharkiv
Ukraine war, day 5: Russian forces are now attempting to skirt around Kyiv and encircle it from the west. Troops fighting out of Crimea continue to make gains and are likely to surround Mariupol soon, while also reaching the outskirts of a key Ukrainian nuclear plant. Fighting in the east continues to be heavy with no breakthrough for Putin
Part of a Russian rocket is seen in the street outside a shop in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine, after bombardment by Russian forces
A military source told MailOnline that ‘cluster’ munitions had been used, in a possible war crime.
‘The BM-21 Grad is a multiple launch rocket system used for “area denial”, dropping cluster bombs on a concentrated area,’ the expert said.
‘It’s mainly used on enemy troops before an offensive. Used against civilians, it’s not only a war crime, but has only one purpose – to spread terror and alarm among the civilian population.’
Graphic images and video then revealed streets littered with the bodies of dead and badly wounded civilians, with other images showing spent BM-21 Grad rocket cartridges laying in the streets and having fallen through apartment roofs.
It marks one of the most-serious attacks on civilians since the war began five days ago, and came despite Ukrainian and Russian delegations sitting down in Belarus for ‘peace talks’.
The cities of Zhytomyr, Zaporizhzhia, and Chernihiv were also bombed overnight, with air raid sirens sounding in other areas.
