The machinery of Kremlin propaganda often functions like a dark theater of the absurd, where facts are sacrificed to weave elaborate, cynical conspiracy theories. A recent case in point involves the Russian Telegram channel “Bloknot.Kherson,” which peddled a bizarre narrative regarding a drone strike on an ATB supermarket truck in Kherson. The Russians claimed that the supermarket chain itself orchestrated the attack on its own vehicle as a cynical ploy to justify closing its stores in the city. To lend this flimsy story a veneer of credibility, the propagandists hijacked footage from our own news outlet, MOST, carefully cropping out our logo to disguise the origin of the video and strip away the original, objective context.
The internal logic of this fabrication is as thin as the evidence provided. According to the Telegram channel, anonymous—and highly convenient—sources alleged that ATB management had supposedly warned employees of impending closures, setting the stage for the “staged” drone strike. They claimed the truck involved was an anomaly, never before seen in the city, and that the resulting fire was the “scripted” event needed to shorten operating hours. It is a classic disinformation tactic: take a real tragedy, inject a fabricated motive, and ignore the reality that the business in question, being one of the largest and most profitable in the region, has no logical incentive to sabotage its own infrastructure or abandon a thriving market.
What makes this disinformation campaign particularly egregious is its absolute detachment from the lived reality of Kherson. The propagandists boldly asserted that, following this “staged” event, the chain immediately restricted its opening hours. This is demonstrably false; despite the hostile narrative, ATB stores in the city have continued to operate, serving the very people they are supposedly abandoning. The claim collapses under the slightest scrutiny, yet for the creators of this content, the goal was never truth. The goal was to sow suspicion, destabilize public confidence in essential services, and create a climate of fear and mutual distrust among the local population.
The conspiracy theories did not stop at the supermarket; the Russian “journalists” took their creative license even further by speculating on the collective psyche of the Kherson residents. In a sweeping, patronizing gesture, they claimed that the citizens of Kherson are secretly clamoring to “hand over” their city to the occupation forces. They painted a picture of a weary, defeatist population whispering that the war is a lost cause and that it is time to surrender to save their lives. It is a transparent attempt to gaslight a city that has shown immense resilience, projecting the occupiers’ desires onto the victims of their aggression to justify the ongoing, brutal reality of the occupation.
Perhaps the most telling aspect of this entire episode is the reaction from the intended audience. Even within the comment sections of the very Telegram channel that published these falsehoods, skepticism was rampant. Readers, possessing a basic sense of logic and a direct view of the situation on the ground, openly mocked the claims, with users asking the channel, “Do you yourselves believe that?” This pushback highlights the fundamental flaw in modern propaganda: when the gulf between official narratives and daily reality becomes too wide, even the most carefully curated disinformation loses its grip on the public consciousness.
Ultimately, this incident is a microcosm of the wider information war being waged against Ukraine. By stealing footage, hiding behind anonymous sources, and weaving tales of self-sabotage, Kremlin-aligned actors attempt to erode the social fabric of occupied territories. They rely on the hope that if they repeat a lie often enough—and accompany it with manipulated visuals—people will eventually stop asking questions. However, the vigilance of local media and the common sense of the Kherson people continue to act as a vital firewall. By exposing these tactics, we not only debunk a specific fake story but also reinforce the importance of critical thinking in an era where the truth is under constant, coordinated siege.