Mobilization in Russia for Feb. 10-12, 2026 CIT Volunteer Summary
Authorities and Legislation
Lawmakers have introduced a bill in the State Duma [lower house of Russia’s Federal Assembly] to expand social guarantees for Rosgvardia [Russian National Guard] and Interior Ministry employees taking part in the war against Ukraine. The measure would provide travel compensation for two family members or close relatives to visit personnel who are injured or fall ill during their service. This proposed legislation would extend a benefit that currently applies only to the families of military personnel.
Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents
The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has determined that a military commissariat [draft office] in Udmurtia [Russia's constituent republic] favored the funeral agency Izh Ritual in the transportation and burial of servicemen killed in the war. This practice violated a Ministry of Defense order that requires military commissariats to organize burials jointly with the families of the deceased. Investigators revealed that the funeral agency received information about the arrival of bodies before relatives did, moved coffins without establishing contracts with families and used an informant employed at the military commissariat. As a result, Izh Ritual accounted for 66% of the military burials in the region in 2024. Although the military commissariat and the funeral home deny the allegations, FAS officials are deciding whether to open an administrative case on suspected collusion, following similar complaints from relatives in the Novosibirsk region.
In the Russian Udmurt Republic, investigators have uncovered collusion between a local military enlistment office and a funeral home in the transportation and burial of fallen soldiers.
The Southern District Military Court has sentenced Ivan Sykalo, a 71-year-old Ukrainian citizen, to five and a half years in a penal colony for participating in a terrorist organization. The charges are related to his service in the Ukrainian Aidar Battalion, which has been declared a terrorist organization in Russia. According to Mediazona, from the fall of 2014 to August 2015 Sykalo served as a driver and participated in patrolling the village of Pisky in the Luhansk region of Ukraine. He has been in custody since October 2025.
In Saint Petersburg, a 20-year-old local resident has been detained on suspicion of setting fire to a railway car. According to reports, he had been in communication with "handlers" via a messenger app prior to the arson. Law enforcement officers opened a criminal case on terrorism charges, and the detainee was sent to a pre-trial detention center.
Also in Saint Petersburg, a 16-year-old teenager has been detained on suspicion of setting fire to two gas stations. An administrative protocol was drawn up against his parents for failure to fulfill their parental duties. It is not yet known whether a criminal case has been opened against the detainee.
A court in Krasnoyarsk ordered a 17-year-old boy held in a pre-trial detention center on charges of preparing an act of sabotage. According to investigators, in February 2026 the teenager, whose name was not disclosed, communicated via a messenger app with an unknown individual and agreed, for $600, to set fire to an electrical transformer in the city of Minusinsk. He tried to recruit acquaintances to take part in the arson, but they refused. He was detained before he could carry out the plan.
In Russia’s constituent Republic of Tatarstan, authorities detained three teenagers, ages 16 and 17, in a case involving an alleged terrorist attack; two of them study at a college in Kazan. According to investigators, the youths found a side job in a messenger app—setting fire to railway signaling equipment near the Vasilyevo station—for 40,000 rubles [$520]. Law enforcement officers say the teenagers attempted to set fire to a relay cabinet on Jan. 25. They were detained the following day, and a court ordered them held in a pre-trial detention center.
The Second Western District Military Court sentenced two men from the Moscow region, Artyom Zharov and Daniil Kulakov, to 18 years in prison in a case involving a group terrorist attack. Prosecutors said that in late December 2024 the men doused two electric commuter trains with gasoline and set them ablaze near the railway stations of Lobnya and Dmitrov. The fire on the train in Lobnya quickly went out, while in Dmitrov the driver’s cabin burned completely. By Jan. 1, 2025, the suspects had been detained and sent to a pre-trial detention center. The men said an unknown person offered them 100,000 rubles [$1,300] to set the train on fire and provide video evidence.
The 2nd Western District Military Court sentenced 66-year-old Ivan Zelinsky, an employee of Vnukovo Airport, to 16 years in a penal colony in a terrorism case. Prosecutors had requested a 17-year sentence for the man. According to investigators, Zelinsky was recruited by unknown individuals posing as officers of the Federal Security Service (FSB). On Dec. 24, 2024, he threw bottles filled with an incendiary mixture at a police station in the Arbat district, attempting to set a service vehicle on fire. The vehicle sustained only minor damage, as the fire was quickly extinguished. Zelinsky denied terrorism charges, calling the incident hooliganism. He claims he acted under pressure from scammers who threatened his wife and says he deliberately threw the bottles away from the car to minimize the damage.
The same military court sentenced 25-year-old Sofia Lepyoshkina, a resident of Serpukhov, to 12 years in a penal colony on charges of assisting terrorism, publicly justifying terrorism and participating in the activities of a terrorist organization. According to prosecutors, in April 2024 she used her Instagram account to call on others to join the Freedom of Russia Legion and sent this message to random users. A few days later, she allegedly left graffiti in support of the group near a bus stop in the town. In addition, she is said to have filled out an application to join the Freedom of Russia Legion and photographed a company involved in the production and repair of military vehicles.
The Russian‑established “Supreme Court of Crimea” has sentenced a Simferopol district resident, born in 1981, to 20 years in a maximum security penal colony on charges of treason and attempted possession of explosives. Investigators said that after the start of the full‑scale war, the man began collaborating with Ukrainian intelligence services. In 2024, acting on instructions from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), he allegedly attempted to transport more than a kilogram of RDX from a cache to another location before being detained. In a video released by the FSB, the defendant stated that SBU representatives had contacted him and, under threat of a treason case, demanded information about senior military personnel, units, movement routes and the locations of air defense systems.
Details have emerged regarding treason charges against 31‑year‑old Kerch native Kirill Kostygov. According to the Pervy Otdel [Department One] human rights project, FSB officers detained him at Domodedovo Airport after checking his phone and finding transfers to Ukrainian funds totaling 2,304.94 rubles [$30]. Since September, Kostygov has been held in pre‑trial detention in Moscow. His detention followed three consecutive administrative arrests for petty hooliganism.
Assistance
Ilya Yemelyanov, commander of the 114th Motorized Rifle Brigade of the RuAF, has been appointed deputy prime minister of the “DPR,” responsible for "life support in the liberated territories." He was previously accused of carrying out reprisals against his subordinates. Prior to his appointment, Yemelyanov participated in the Time of Heroes personnel program.
Children and Militarization
Graduates of the VOIN [Warrior] military-patriotic education center will begin receiving additional points when applying to universities. According to the center’s board chairman, 32 universities in 13 regions of Russia, as well as in the occupied territories of Ukraine, already recognize certificates confirming completion of the program.
Longreads
The Insider [independent Russian investigative media outlet] has published an investigation into the recruitment of mercenaries from Latin America and Africa into the Russian army. Many are transported through Moscow to a collection point in Saransk, the capital of Mordovia, from where they are sent to the frontline in Ukraine.
The Vyorstka media outlet reported on how Russian residents are forced to seek compensation from Russian authorities for housing damaged by Ukrainian drones.
Mediazona spoke with human rights defender Artur Alkhastov about how Kazakhstan has ceased to be a safe haven for Russian political emigrants.