600 Ukrainian soldiers killed in Russian attack? Here’s what journalists in Kramatorsk found out

At first, the mayor of the targeted city, Oleksandr Honcharenko, said only two schools and eight apartments and garages were damaged: “There were no casualties,” he said.

At that point, many journalists present flocked in this direction.

Anti Kuronen, a reporter for the Finnish national channel Yle, described the situation in a series of tweets: “I’m there, it’s strange that the building (one of the affected schools, the teacher’s note) is not closed. Ambulances are also not seen by the public. Last night when this site was hit I heard an explosion but no direct impact,” he wrote. “Military liaisons went to the place this morning and said the school was empty. Another missile also hit the old garages. I have to say that at this point I trust my own observations and Ukrainian reports more than Russian reports,” he said.

A CNN team also contradicted the Russian report: “There was no unusual activity in and around Kramatorsk, including near the city morgue,” it said.

Finally, several reporters from the Reuters news agency went to the scene and said the strikes had missed their targets. Words confirmed by Italian journalist Daniele Raineri for La Repubblica: “The missiles made large holes in the ground and did not hit the surrounding buildings. The seats are vacant,” he concluded.