A top Russian actress was killed while performing for President Vladimir Putin's troops in Ukraine. A chilling cellphone video captured the tragic moment the actress lost her life on stage during the performance in the occupied Donetsk region after she was struck by a Ukrainian missile, in what has been described as a "revenge" attack.
The video, released by Russian news Telegram channel Astra, was recorded on Sunday and has since gone viral. The hair-raising clip shows 40-year-old Polina Menshikh singing and playing the guitar at a crowded cultural center in the village of Kumachovo, located less than 40 miles from the front lines, while the marines watched her performance.
Revenge Attack During Concert
Shortly after the performance, a loud crash resonates, causing the camera to shake before abruptly cutting to black. In the background, a man's voice exclaims in Russian, "F–k!" The abrupt change in the footage suggests the impact of an incident or explosion.
The tragic death of Polina Menshikh has been officially confirmed by the Russian state-run TASS news agency, as well as by the Portal theater in St. Petersburg.
"It is with great pain that we inform you that Polina Menshikh ... died yesterday at a performance in the Donbas as a result of shelling," the theater said in a statement Monday.
The fatal strike was carried out by the Ukrainian military, using a US-supplied HIMARS missile system.
The incident occurred during a military awards ceremony and concert on Sunday, which was commemorating Russia's annual Day of Missile Forces and Artillery. The attack resulted in the death of at least 25 Russian troops, with over 100 others sustaining injuries.
Robert Brovdi, the commander of the Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance unit known as "Birds of Magyar," wrote on his Telegram channel that the attack on Sunday was a form of "revenge for the 128th [Brigade]."
Striking Back
The "revenge for the 128th" that Brovdi said, relates to the November 3 Russian missile attack. That incident took place during a military awards ceremony honoring Ukraine's Artillery Forces Day, and at least twenty troops from the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade in the Zaporizhzhia region lost their lives.
It is believed that the new attack on the Russian military event was retaliation for the previous one.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky labeled the attack as a "tragedy that could have been avoided."
Additionally, the Ukrainian military officially acknowledged on Wednesday that the deadly strike was a retaliatory action against Russia's 810th Marine Brigade.
"Ukraine's defense forces quickly determined the venue of the Russians' celebration and warmly congratulated them," the Strategic Communications Department of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated on Telegram.
Brovdi predicted that obituaries for the Russian marines who were killed would soon be seen in the port city of Sevastopol in occupied Crimea, where the 810th Brigade is based.
Criticism of Russia's military leadership was voiced by a pro-Russian military blogger who condemned them as "untaught idiots" for not foreseeing Ukraine's retaliatory actions and proceeding with the awards ceremony in such close proximity to the front lines.
"The result is predictable — the enemy struck with HIMARS, including Russian actress Polina Menshikh, who was performing at that moment, who died," the blogger griped.
"Almost two years of war, and the untaught idiots still do not know what to do and what not to do," he added.
