There’s a new weapon heading for Ukraine that could help defend its cities from missiles – and it’s named after a famous raccoon.
For months NAFO (North Atlantic Fella Organisation) have been waging an information war on social media against Russian propaganda, and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Ukraine’s armies as they go.
So when Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s United24 initiative asked if NAFO wanted to raise money to pay for a naval drone – and give it a name – they were quick to bite.
The challenge to the fellas is part of United24’s quest to assemble a fleet of 100 sea drones, following what Ukraine says was a strike on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in October exclusively using unmanned vessels.
It only took a few weeks for the fellas to raise the $250,000 (£205,000) needed for one such drone, which they have duly named Raccoon’s Revenge.
Image: ‘The raccoon of Kherson’ which was taken from the city’s zoo has a Telegram channel dedicated to it
Since then, “The Raccoon of Kherson” has become something of a celebrity on Russian social media and has been used as a mascot by Russian paratroopers.
Clearly the fellas believe that the raccoon has not forgotten its Ukrainian roots, and the moniker Raccoon’s Revenge defeated names including HMS Bonquerer and Aqua Bonker 9000 in a recent poll of more than 11,000 people.
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This video shared by Ukrainian media outlets purports to show maritime drones attacking Russian warships in Sevastopol in October
Money raised by NAFO fellas helping Ukraine
“I was partial to HMS Bonqueror myself, but Racoon’s Revenge was the community choice,” US Army veteran and current fella Pete told Sky News.
He added: “If a Russian warship gets taken out by a drone crowdfunded by NAFO, that might be hard to top as far as humour in this war goes.
“And with the thousands of mortar and artillery shells, dozens of vehicles and artillery pieces we’ve sponsored, and all the rest, that’s a pretty high bar to clear.”
Pete also helps run the forge – the team of designers who create custom ‘fella’ avatars for people who donate to Ukraine.
He added: “I’d like to highlight the fellas in the forge who are responsible for making the diverse, highly creative profile pics for donation.
“Without them, this whole thing is impossible. They’re truly the glue that holds this together, and without them, Kama and I would have been unable to keep up.”
Image: They are NAFO and they’re here to troll Russian politicians and raise money for Ukraine. Meet the fellas. Pic: @Official_NAFO/@fellarequests
NAFO have already raised huge sums – a million dollars by some counts – for the Ukrainian military and their tongue-in-cheek humour has proved popular online.
Their slogans and fellas are appearing everywhere, including painted on a 2S7 Pion self-propelled gun named “Super Bonker 9,000”.
United24 said on Twitter: “You did it, you magnificent doggos!
“As of this morning, $255,546 for the #NAFOdrone has been raised!
“Thank you to every fella for making this happen, for every #nafofleet, every donation. Raccoon’s Revenge is non-negotiable, thanks to each one of you.”
So what are naval drones like the Raccoon’s Revenge, and have they been used in the war before?
Russia says that 16 maritime drones were involved in the attack on its Black Sea fleet near the Crimean port of Sevastopol in October, with two ships suffering damage.
United24 claims that three Russian vessels were damaged, including the flagship Admiral Makarov.
Image: An example of the naval drones Ukraine is crowdfunding. Pic: United24
The naval drones being funded through United24 are 5.5 metres long, have a range of up to 800km (500 miles) and can carry a combat load of up to 200kg.
Missiles fired from Russian warships have been part of Moscow’s destruction of Ukraine’s power networks that has plunged cities into darkness – so Ukraine hopes that naval drones can disrupt the ships.
The IDF has admitted to mistakenly identifying a convoy of aid workers as a threat – following the emergence of a video which proved their ambulances were clearly marked when Israeli troops opened fire on them.
The bodies of 15 aid workers – including eight medics working for the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) – were found in a “mass grave” after the incident, according to the head of the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Jonathan Whittall.
The Israeli military originally claimed an investigation found the vehicles did not have any headlights or emergency signals and were therefore targeted as they looked “suspicious”.
But video footage obtained by the PRCS, and verified by Sky News, showed the ambulances and a fire vehicle clearly marked with flashing red lights.
In a briefing from the IDF, they said the ambulances arrived in the Tel Sultan neighbourhood in Rafah shortly after a Hamas police vehicle drove through.
Image: Palestinians mourning the medics after their bodies were recovered. Pic: Reuters
An IDF surveillance aircraft was watching the movement of the ambulances and notified troops on the ground. The IDF said it will not be releasing that footage.
When the ambulances arrived, the soldiers opened fire, thinking the medics were a threat, according to the IDF.
The soldiers were surprised by the convoy stopping on the road and several people getting out quickly and running, the IDF claimed, adding the soldiers were unaware the suspects were in fact unarmed medics.
An Israeli military official would not say how far away troops were when they fired on the vehicles.
The IDF acknowledged that its statement claiming that the ambulances had their lights off was incorrect, and was based on the testimony from the soldiers in the incident.
The newly emerged video footage showed that the ambulances were clearly identifiable and had their lights on, the IDF said.
The IDF added that there will be a re-investigation to look into this discrepancy.
Image: The clip is filmed through a vehicle windscreen – with three red light vehicles visible in front
Addressing the fact the aid workers’ bodies were buried in a mass grave, the IDF said in its briefing this is an approved and regular practice to prevent wild dogs and other animals from eating the corpses.
The IDF could not explain why the ambulances were also buried.
The IDF said six of the 15 people killed were linked to Hamas, but revealed no detail to support the claim.
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Bodies of aid workers found in Gaza
The newly emerged footage of the incident was discovered on a phone belonging to one of the workers who was killed, PRCS president Dr Younis Al Khatib said.
“His phone was found with his body and he recorded the whole event,” he said. “His last words before being shot, ‘Forgive me, mom. I just wanted to help people. I wanted to save lives’.”
Sky News used an aftermath video and satellite imagery to verify the location and timing of the newly emerged footage of the incident.
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Aid worker attacks increasing
It was filmed on 23 March north of Rafah and shows a convoy of marked ambulances and a fire-fighting vehicle travelling south along a road towards the city centre. All the vehicles visible in the convoy have their flashing lights on.
The footage was filmed early in the morning, with a satellite image seen by Sky News taken at 9.48am local time on the same day showing a group of vehicles bunched together off the road.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has hit out at the US over its “weak” response to lethal Russian attacks on his hometown on Friday.
President Zelenskyy posted a lengthy and emotional statement on X about Russia’s strikes on Kryvyi Rih, which killed 19 people.
Meanwhile Ukrainian drones hit an explosives factory in Russia’s Samara region in an overnight strike, a member of Ukraine’s SBU security service told Reuters.
In his post, President Zelenskyy accused the United States of being “afraid” to name-check Russia in its comment on the attack.
“Unfortunately, the reaction of the American Embassy is unpleasantly surprising: such a strong country, such a strong people – and such a weak reaction,” he wrote on X.
“They are even afraid to say the word “Russian” when talking about the missile that killed children.”
America’s ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink had written on X: “Horrified that tonight a ballistic missile struck near a playground and restaurant in Kryvyi Rih.
“More than 50 people injured and 16 killed, including 6 children. This is why the war must end.”
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Strike on Zelenskyy’s home city
President Zelenskyy went on in his post to say: “Yes, the war must end. But in order to end it, we must not be afraid to call a spade a spade.
“We must not be afraid to put pressure on the only one who continues this war and ignores all the world’s proposals to end it. We must put pressure on Russia, which chooses to kill children instead of a ceasefire.”
Grandmother ‘burned to death in her home’
Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city’s defense council, said the missile attack, followed by a drone attack, had killed 19 people, including nine children.
“The Iskander-M missile strike with cluster munitions at the children’s playground in the residential area, to make the shrapnel fly further apart, killed 18 people.
“One grandmother was burnt to death in her house after Shahed’s direct hit.”
Russia’s defence ministry said it had struck a military gathering in a restaurant – an assertion rebutted by the Ukrainian military as misinformation.
“The missile hit right on the street – around ordinary houses, a playground, shops, a restaurant,” President Zelenskyy wrote.
Mr Zelenskyy also detailed the child victims of the attack including “Konstantin, who will be 16 forever” and “Arina, who will also be 7 forever”.
The UK’s chief of the defence staff Sir Tony Radakin said he had met the Ukrainian leader on Friday, along with French armed forces leader General Thierry Burkhard.
“Britain and France are coming together & Europe is stepping up in a way that is real & substantial, with 200 planners from 30 nations working to strengthen Ukraine’s long term security,” Sir Tony wrote.
Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.
The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.
The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.