HIMARS Eviscerate Russia's Tor Missile System: Video

A Ukrainian High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) attack blew up a Russian mobile short-range Tor missile system in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, combat footage released by Kyiv's military showed.

The aerial footage was posted on Telegram by the 79th Separate Air Assault Brigade. The unit said it tracked down the Russian Tor air defense system using a drone, before targeting it with U.S.-supplied HIMARS.

The U.S.-supplied HIMARS have allowed Ukraine to destroy Russia's most advanced antiaircraft missile systems.

Kyiv said the Tor missile system was destroyed the Donetsk region—which, with the Luhansk region, forms the Donbas area. The Kremlin has been pushing for the total capture of the regions since Russia's initial invasion of eastern Ukraine in 2014.

The Tor systems can engage targets at a distance of up to 10 miles, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a U.S. think tank.

"Our scouts inspected the 'Donbas Arena' in Donetsk from a drone and discovered the Russian antiaircraft missile complex 'Tor.' HIMARS immediately struck at its location," the brigade said, sharing the combat footage.

The video shows the Tor missile system being struck, causing a huge explosion and a column of smoke.

"Also in these shots are Russian kamikaze bikers, burned enemy tanks, and occupiers maimed by shrapnel. Another attempt by the enemy to break through our defenses failed again," the bridge wrote.

It continued: "Putin's 'special operation' is going strictly according to plan. According to the plan of our paratroopers. Glory to you, warriors! Brilliant work!"

Newsweek has contacted the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email. We could not independently verify when or where the footage was filmed.

Ukraine has used the HIMARS rocket system extensively throughout the war, which began in February 2022. Washington has supplied the Ukrainians with at least 39 of the systems since the conflict began.

Kyiv's forces have also regularly targeted Russia's Tor systems, which can down aircraft, drones, guided missiles and other precision munitions at medium to low altitudes. The Tor-M2 variant can destroy drones and "other complex aerial targets" while on the move, Russia's state-run news agency Tass reported in February 2023, citing a military expert.

Earlier this month, the Ukrainian military released a video of a HIMARS or artillery strike on a Russian Tor that missed a reconnaissance drone from Ukraine's 14th UAV Regiment.

The 35-second aerial footage was first shared by the Ukrainian Armed Forces Centre for Strategic Communication on Telegram, which said it showed a Ukrainian drone evading a missile from the Russian Tor.

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