The Kremlin is preparing to massacre civilians then use fake news messaging in state-run and co-opted international media to pin blame for the mass casualty event on Ukraine, Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (SZRU) said on Friday in a rare public statement.
The Russian operation is likely to take the form of an “armed provocation” against an Orthodox Christian church (or another location where civilians gather peacefully) and may take place overnight on Jan. 6-7, according to the statement – the date of Christmas in the Julian calendar and a major religious holiday for the Christian faithful in Russia.
The strike would most likely take place within the Russian Federation or in a Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia with a Christian Orthodox community. A “site of high symbolic significance” might be targeted instead of a church, the statement said.
The Kremlin’s objective in perpetrating such an attack would be to undermine White House support for Ukraine in ongoing US-led peace talks – and, with luck, torpedo them.
Aside from citing “credible sources,” the SZRU statement offered no proof to confirm these allegations – noting, however, that terrorism and false flag operations are common practice for Russian intelligence agencies, and calling on independent media to be critical of Kremlin-produced content.
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