Bellingcat analysts, along with experts in nuclear weapons and missile technology, have confirmed the earlier conclusion of the SSU: the Okhmatdyt children's hospital was struck by a Russian X-101 cruise missile on Monday. This was reported on the Bellingcat website.
The analysis conducted by Bellingcat, using social media videos and a 3D model of the missile, indicates that the munitions are indeed a Russian X-101 cruise missile. This conclusion aligns with the opinion of experts, including Fabian Hoffmann, a doctoral candidate at the University of Oslo specializing in missile technology.
Additionally, Jeffrey Lewis, an expert in nuclear weapons and missiles at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California, also concluded that the missile seen in social media footage after the attack on Okhmatdyt is an X-101.
The missile filmed in social media videos has several characteristics, including what appears to be a jet engine at the rear and two short wings near the middle. A comparison of a screenshot of the missile that hit the hospital with a 3D visualization of the X-101 missile shows that these two missiles indeed share common features.
"These are distinctive features of the X-101 cruise missile, which is exclusively used by the Russian armed forces," stated Bellingcat.
Bellingcat experts also examined an alternative theory circulating online that the hospital was attacked with an American AIM-120 missile from the NASAMS air defense system but found no evidence to support this version.
Analysts explained that the missile that hit the hospital has a jet engine visibly protruding from its body.
"This distinctive feature is present on the X-101 but not on the AIM-120. Additionally, the wings in the middle section of the missile that hit the hospital do not match those of the AIM-120," the report states.
During a massive Russian missile attack on July 8, Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Kramatorsk, and Slovyansk were affected. Over 40 missiles of various types were launched. Residential buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital were damaged.
One of the strikes hit the building of the Okhmatdyt children's hospital. At the time of the Russian attack, 627 children were in "Okhmatdyt"; eight of them were injured, two adults were killed. Ninety-four patients were transported to other hospitals.
