On Nov. 10, Russia’s Defense Ministry said service members from the 3rd Army Corps and the 11th Separate Engineering Brigade of Russia’s Southern Group of Forces were clearing houses and roads in what it called “liberated Kostiantynivka.” However, at least two of the segments were filmed in other settlements — occupied Toretsk and Pivnichne.
Open source intelligence (OSINT) researcher Bielitz established the locations by geolocating footage published by the Russian side. The sites he identified are each located around 20 kilometers away from Kostiantynivka, a town that Moscow claimed to have fully captured in July even though fighting for the city is ongoing.
The video put out by the Ministry of Defense shows Russian combat engineers who are said to be clearing mines from roads and buildings in Kostiantynivka. Bielitz, however, determined that footage at the 1:14 mark was filmed in Toretsk at coordinates 48.392569, 37.853516. Another segment, at 1:31, was geolocated farther east in Pivnichne at coordinates 48.393930, 37.902723. Both settlements are in territory controlled by Russian forces. The geolocation of those segments does not establish where the rest of the video was filmed.
“We are working successfully in Kostiantynivka, clearing roads of explosive hazards so people can be evacuated and supplies and personnel rotations can take place. There is a lot of work for our unit in Kostiantynivka,” said a combat engineer using the call sign Korshun (lit. “Kite”). The footage was also broadcast by the Russian television channel First Sevastopol, which presented it as video of demining operations in Kostiantynivka.
Two days later, on Nov. 12, Vladimir Putin proposed carrying out a joint humanitarian mission in Kostiantynivka modeled on the recent evacuation of civilians from Russian-occupied Oleshky, located in Ukraine’s Kherson Region. Putin said Russian troops would need five days to clear mines from approaches to Kostiantynivka, again claiming that the town was under Russia’s control.
Russian forces, however, continue offensive operations around Kostiantynivka. According to The Insider’s Nov. 11 battlefield summary, Russian units expanded the area under their control southeast of the city. On the morning of Nov. 12, Ukraine’s General Staff reported 14 Russian attacks in the Kostiantynivka sector over the previous 24 hours. There is no independent confirmation that Russia has full control of the city.
Russian forces have previously used footage from other settlements to illustrate purported battlefield gains. In early November, Bielitz found that a video claiming to show Russian marines in Dobropillia had actually been filmed in occupied Myrnohrad, behind Russian lines.
