'Thermite Munitions' Rain from Sky on Ukraine's Donetsk in Striking Videos

Videos circulating on social media purport to show thermite munitions raining down from the sky in Donetsk, a city in eastern Ukraine.

Since April, Russia has concentrated on capturing the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces that make up the Donbas region, where pro-Moscow separatists have proclaimed independence.

White streaks were seen lighting up the night sky as they fell in Donetsk, which is under the control of Russian-backed separatists, in numerous videos shared on Twitter and Telegram.

"There are a number of videos showing what looks like incendiary munitions used on Donetsk tonight," Rob Lee, a Russian defense policy specialist at King's College London's Department of War Studies, tweeted alongside a video.

Incendiary weapons contain flammable materials that can set fire to buildings or cause severe burns and respiratory damage.

Some speculated that the munitions contained white phosphorus—a self-igniting chemical that can burn at upwards of 4,800 degrees Fahrenheit. Others said it was thermite, an incendiary compound that burns at a temperature of over 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

"Skies over Donetsk, crazy. I'd say this looks like CGI if it weren't filmed by lots of different people. Thermite, not phosphorus," Aric Toler, a researcher at investigative journalism group Bellingcat, wrote on Twitter.

It's not clear who was responsible for the attack, and both Russia and Ukraine possess incendiary weapons. Russian and Ukrainian officials have been contacted for comment.

In March 2022, the Ukrainian Military Center, a non-government think tank, concluded that Russia had used 9M22S incendiary munitions in Popasna, in Luhansk province. They said the effect of "these flammable munitions and lighting munitions is often confused with phosphorus munitions."

The use of incendiary weapons in war is regulated by Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Protocol III.

The convention prohibits the use of air-dropped incendiary weapons in areas with large civilian populations, but allows the use of ground-launched incendiary weapons in the same scenario where the military target is "clearly separated from the concentration of civilians and all feasible precautions are taken," according to Human Rights Watch.

That distinction is arbitrary "because they cause the same type and magnitude of harm and have both been used in recent conflicts," HRW said.

In a 2020 report, HRW said incendiary weapons "inflict excruciating burns, sometimes to the bone, and can cause respiratory damage, infection, shock, and organ failure.

"Over time, contractures—the permanent tightening of muscles and other tissue—impede mobility, while the trauma of the initial attack, painful treatments, and appearance-changing scars lead to psychological harm and social exclusion.

"The fires caused by incendiary weapons can also destroy civilian structures and property, damage crops, and kill livestock. Furthermore, the inadequate resources available to medical providers in armed conflict settings exacerbate the already challenging process of treating serious burns."