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On April 5, journalists asked Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov about reports that a Ukrainian military drone caused an explosion in Donbas that killed a 5-year-old child. The report emerged from social media channels operated by Russian proxies who control eastern Ukraine along the Russian border. A variety of pro-Moscow media outlets in Russia and Ukraine quickly picked up the story. On April 5, Russia’s Investigative Committee said it was opening a case. That is despite the fact that the incident in question purportedly took place in a foreign country where Russian law enforcement has no authority.Russia denies any involvement in the conflict in eastern Ukraine despite overwhelming evidence that it supports separatist rebels and their self-proclaimed republics in the area. Peskov told reporters:"I don’t have verified information about the child’s death. However, I see no reason to question the reports that came from the self-proclaimed republics ... It’s certainly hard to imagine someone spreading fake news about the death of a child." This is misleading: In fact, there are good reasons to question the news from Russia’s proxies in Donbas and Russian state media, since they have an established record of coordinating and fabricating false news, including disinformation that involves children.First, there is the unsubstantiated case at hand – a 5-year-old allegedly killed by a Ukrainian drone. Although the story gained rapid traction in Russian social and state media, authorities of the rebel-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic" (DNR) released no names or personal details of the child or its family.Initially
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