Viral Ukraine combat photo dubbed a fake

It should have been a powerful image depicting the horrors of war in the Ukraine, but a number of photographers and soldiers based in the region have dubbed the work as a "fake".

An Open Letter from the war photographers describes the image as being "staged" and a "clumsy attempt at the information war," the Washington Post reports.

"We emphasize the only thing we are winning in the conflict with Russia is uncompromising and truthful presentation of the news," the letter, also published on RT reads.

"We kindly ask not to put these photos on a par with Russian fakes. The war is really going on, really, people are dying, and to prove it there is … documentary photo and video evidence."

The debate about the picture's authenticity has played out over social media – in particular Facebook.

However, the man who took the picture, Dmitry Muravsky insists it is real.

The Post reported Muravsky had commented on Facebook the picture was taken on June 4 in the small village of Shyrokne.

Since then, Muravsky has returned to the village and interviewed two of the soldiers said to be have been in the picture.

According to a Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty translation, the soldiers confirmed the incident, however an officer from the unit wrote in a Facebook post the men in the video were tasked by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense to substantiate Muravsky’s account.

Meanwhile the Moscow Times is reporting a book released by the Russian Investigative Committee about the Ukrainian government forces' "crimes".

It has used an image of a burning city, which was condemned as being "fake" by online activists more than a year ago.