Russia says their troops were killed in a devastating HIMARS strike because some soldiers were using cell phones and gave their location away

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, many of its troops died in a recent Ukrainian attack because they were using cell phones.

Russian troops came under attack on New Year's Eve. The Russians say they were hit by the Ukrainian troops with the HIMARS rocket system.

The Russians blamed their own soldiers for allowing the enemy to locate and determine the coordinates of military personnel for launching a missile strike.

The main reason for what happened was the switch on and massive use by personnel of mobile phones in a reach zone of enemy weapons.

Russia said 63 of its soldiers died in the New Year's strike by the Ukrainians. The death toll was reported by the defense ministry.

The number of Russian casualties reported by the Ukrainian military has not been verified.

Ukrainians have been able to locate Russian troops since the start of the war because of the use of cell phones.

According to an investigation by the New York Times, Ukrainian forces were able to locate Russian troops by using calls from foreign numbers.

The Times reported that a Ukrainian official said they listened to the Russian soldiers as they panicked. Ordinary phones were used to make decisions.

The representatives for the Kremlin didn't reply immediately.