Russia-Ukraine war: Putin's forces face casualties as 7 top army officials slain in war

Though the Russian forces have been unrelenting in their pursuit to invade Ukraine by unleashing extreme military aggression, Putin's forces have been facing immense casualties on their end as several top military officials were killed in recent days amid the ongoing war. As per media reports, Russian general Lt Gen Yakov Rezantsev was slain on Saturday. As per the Ukrainian Defence Ministry, Rezantsev was the highest-ranked officer to be killed in the past 32 days of the war. While speaking to BBC, a Ukrainian official told the British media outlet that the top military officials of Russian forces are now fighting the battle from the front line in order to boost the morale of the soldiers. "Deaths also suggested a highly successful sniper campaign which could degrade the Russian command structures," a retired British Army officer told BBC. As per media reports, at least seven top Russian troops were killed ever since the onset of the invasion.

3800 Russiasoldiers killed since invasion

Notably, on Friday, the deputy head of Russia’s military general staff confirmed the killing of 1,351 Russian soldiers. Furthermore, he added that more than 3,800 soldiers have been injured in the "military operation." Contrary to his statement, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) estimated around 7,000 to 15,000 Russian soldiers slain in four weeks of the war in Ukraine.
It is pertinent to mention here that Russia initiated a full-fledged war against Ukraine nearly two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognising the independence of breakaway regions Donetsk and Luhansk. Putin's action came despite the West's repetitive warning and speculations about his ill-intention to invade Ukraine. Until then, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had called his Russian counterpart to meet him, seeking a resolution to avert the war.

However, on February 24, the Russian troops initiated a military operation against Ukraine, resulting in the heavy shelling and killing of more than 2,000 Ukrainian civilians-- a claim which has been fluctuating ever since the onset of the ongoing war. 
Moreover, the Ukraine prosecutor's office said it has registered at least 2,869 cases of war crimes against the Russian forces for breaking laws and customs of the war. Apart from the war crimes, it has registered as many as 1,696 cases of crime against "National Security".

Image: AP