This is the message Russian propaganda is spreading to Western audiences. Allegedly, Russian troops retreated from Kherson due to fears that Ukrainian forces would blow up a dam at the nearby Kakhovka hydroelectric power station. The flood could have caused the death of many military and civilians.

The fact-checkers EU vs Disinfo drew attention to the spread of the message. In fact, Ukrainian military intelligence reported on October 21 that the Russian army had placed two military vehicles loaded with explosives on the road crossing the dam. The dam of the Kakhovska HPP is 30 meters high and holds back 18 million cubic meters of water. Undermining the dam could lead to huge flooding of Kherson and smaller settlements around. It would also have a significant impact on the operation of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, since this facility is inextricably linked with it. After the retreat of the Russian army from Kherson on November 11, the US satellite company Maxar reported that significant new damage to the dam in Nova Kakhovka in southern Ukraine was visible.

Russian propaganda systematically denies Russia's culpability in the tragedy of 1932-1933. Moreover, in April 2008, Russia protested against the international recognition of the Holodomor as a crime against Ukrainians.

In order to shift the blame for this crime, the Russians systematically spread fake stories that the Holodomor was the result of “excesses at positions” or the result of a drought, and not a systemic policy of Russia. Like, local officials did not report to the leaders about the situation. They also argued that the Holodomor was a fiction of Western intelligence services to discredit the USSR. The Center for Counteracting Disinformation published key fakes of Russian propaganda on the Holodomor in Ukraine in 1932-1933. More about the Holodomor of 1932 - 1933 and the Russian-Ukrainian war is here.

Russian propagandists are shocked by how courageously and unbendingly all of Ukraine is going through the third day of blackout, as Ukrainians, instead of criticizing the authorities and blaming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi for all the troubles, share tips on social networks on how to survive in dark times and help each other.

In this regard, Russian anonymous telegram channels launched messages that the Ukrainian authorities allegedly record the growth of rebellious moods in society due to the blackout, but in order to muffle them, they convince people to be silent and endure. Like, the one who meekly accepts the lack of electricity, communications and water is the best patriot.

With such messages, propagandists want to incite Ukrainians to take to the streets and protest against the authorities, and not to be obedient. It seems that if they do not do this now, it will be even worse in winter, and only the Office of the President is to blame for everything.

A photo of the famous football player Lionel Messi is circulating on social networks. In the photo, he allegedly holds a piece of paper with the text "Zelenskyi idi ..." (Zelenskyi go..). In the comments, they write that at the opening of the World Cup, Messi voiced his opinion on Ukrainian refugees: “I'm tired of watching this meaningless war! Zelenskyi, take your people and kick them out of Europe, we know the truth!” It is not true.

According to the fact-checkers of the MythDetector project, the photo of Lionel Messi has been altered by software. In the original photo, taken in 2014, Messi was holding a piece of paper with "Fuerza Luca" words written on it, when he was encouraging a 9-year-old fan who was suffering from cancer. Also, in open sources there are no calls by Messi to Volodymyr Zelenskyi.