Goats hover around a captured military equipment of the Russian forces in the center of the Ukrainian capital
(Picture: ABACA/PA Images)A “chaotic” goat is being hailed as a hero of Kyiv after it triggered a string of grenades laid around a hospital by Russian troops injuring 40.
The goat is said to have triggered a trip wire as Russians pinned grenades around the edge of a local hospital in a “circular defence”, Ukraine’s Chief Intelligence Directorate said.
The animal, known as “the Goat of Kyiv”, headed straight for the boobytrap with the Russian munitions exploding in a chain reaction injuring dozens of soldiers who were waiting in ambush.
“As a result of the goat’s ‘chaotic’ movements, the animal ‘disposed of’ several grenades,” the Defense Intelligence said.
“As a result of a chain reaction, several (Russians) sustained injuries of varying degrees of severity.”
The Goat of Kyiv was named in reference to the mythical pilot, the Ghost of Kyiv, who is rumoured to have downed as many as 40 enemy planes in the invasion.
The Defense Intelligence of Ukraine said on Monday the incident took place in the village of Kinski Rozdory in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
The condition of the animal is not currently known.
It came as Vladimir Putin’s air force is struggling to support his invasion of Ukraine and has been forced to turn to retired personnel to bolster his troops.
In its latest intelligence update, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said the capture of a Russian pilot on June 17 - a former Major in the Russian air force who returned to action as a contractor with the Wagner Group - showed how Mr Putin’s forces were being stretched.
The MOD added that the aircraft which Ukrainian forces said was shot down - a Russian Su-25 FROGFOOT ground attack fighter jet - was likely to be an older model because the pilot was using commercial GPS devices rather than up to date Russian military navigation equipment.
