RPO weapons have seen use by the Soviet Army in Afghanistan and by both the Russian and the separatist forces in the First and Second Chechen Wars . According to state Duma member Yuri Savelyev the first explosion prior to the exchange of gun-fire during the Beslan school siege on 1 September 2004 was most likely a thermobaric RPO-A Shmel . On 9 August 2014 , during the Donbass War , the Ukrainian border checkpoint of Milove was attacked using RPO flamethrowers . The main building was hit by five incendiary rockets . It was used by Indian Army para-commandos in September 2016 for surgical strike against terrorists in Pakistan 's part of Kashmir successfully . Also used on 8 February 2017 in Ukraine , killing DPR commander Mikhail " Givi " Tolstykh
Beslan school siege
Beslan school siege
RPO-A Shmel