Mobilization in Russia for Oct. 21-22, 2024 CIT Volunteer Summary

Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising

Authorities in Moscow are requiring many conscripts to fill out forms that include a clause on the non-disclosure of state secrets, reports the human rights organization Shkola Prizyvnika [Conscript School]. The organization cited a Moscow college student who contacted them after he and around 20 other conscripts were compelled to sign such forms at the city’s Unified Military Recruitment Center. He said officials had summoned the young men for a military service register data check-up. Access to state secrets imposes restrictions on leaving the country and entails criminal liability in case of attempts to cross the Russian border. Military collection points have the right to issue these forms to individuals performing statutory military service when assigning them to "secret" units. However, human rights activists point out that this practice has not previously been applied to conscripts. They consider it illegal and provide advice on what to do in such situations.

Mobilized Soldiers, Volunteer Fighters and Contract Soldiers

The list of mobilized soldiers killed in the war has been updated to include Ivan Zakroishchik and Maksim Brylyov from the Zabaykalsky region [Russia's federal subject], Arman Dzharshiev from the Orenburg region, Aleksandr Demeshkov from the Khanty-Mansi autonomous region–Yugra [Russia's federal subject], Yakov Chekh from the Samara region, as well as Ruslan Fatkheyev, Rustem Basharov, Stanislav Glushkov, Sergey Lipin, Aleksey Devyatov, Vladimir Latyshov and Bulat Gayazov from Russia's constituent Republic of Bashkortostan.

Gaziz Zinnatov, a 21-year-old conscript soldier who was killed on Aug. 15 in the Kursk region, has been buried in Bashkortostan.

Nikita Molochkovsky, a 20-year-old conscript soldier whose contract with the Ministry of Defense was signed by his commander, was killed in the war. His death was reported by Governor of the Sakhalin region Valery Limarenko. In July 2024, Molochkovsky's mother disclosed on social media that her son, along with most of his fellow soldiers, had been deployed to the front after six months of statutory military service. Molochkovsky's friends, who were contacted by the Govorit NeMoskva [NonMoscow Is Speaking] Telegram channel, assert that Nikita was not inclined to sign up for contract military service and that his signature on the contract had been forged.

Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] has published a video filmed in October 2024 at the main city cemetery in Stavropol. The first graves of those killed in the war against Ukraine appeared in early March 2022, when several dozen paratroopers from the 247th Airborne Regiment were buried at the Krestovozdvizhenskoye cemetery. Since then, the "Alley of Heroes" at the cemetery has grown to hundreds of graves.

The Astra Telegram channel reports that military personnel assigned to the 123rd Motorized Rifle Brigade have been going missing en masse, often even before reaching the brigade. Wives and mothers of the missing soldiers have appealed to Vladimir Putin and Alexander Bastrykin [Head of Russia’s Investigative Committee] to request assistance in locating their loved ones and conducting a review of the brigade’s command. They have received no information about servicemen’s whereabouts, with most families not even receiving official notifications about their disappearance. Some women claim that their relatives were sent to the brigade either unlawfully or as a form of punishment. Additionally, they report a lack of medical evacuation for the wounded. Astra has published the names of 20 missing soldiers.

Aleksandr Nesterenko, a 24-year-old member of an assault unit belonging to the 102nd Motorized Rifle Regiment, was held captive from Jan. 15 to July 17 of this year. After his release, he was denied rehabilitation and leave. Instead, the regiment commander has been pressuring soldiers who were in captivity to return to the frontline.

Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents

Residents of the town of Alekseyevka in the Belgorod region have complained about the behavior of local territorial defense forces. According to locals, due to regular drunken fights, disturbances and shouting by the fighters, residents have been forced to call the police.

In the city of Novokuznetsk, 50-year-old Aleksandr Gorkunov, a local resident who had returned from the war and had prior convictions for murder and illegal possession of firearms, has been detained. He is suspected of planting a homemade explosive device in a colleague’s car. During a search of his apartment, law enforcement officers found five magazines for a Kalashnikov assault rifle. A criminal case has been opened against Gorkunov on charges of attempted destruction of someone else's property. He has been released on his own recognizance with orders not to leave the area.

The Tomsk Garrison Court has fined serviceman Aleksandr Biryukov 80,000 rubles [$830] for theft involving breaking and entering.

Corporal Dmitry L. avoided prosecution in a criminal case related to going AWOL. The soldier left his unit in May last year after not being discharged despite being assigned service fitness category "V" (partially fit for military service) following an injury. In January 2024, he was detained as a suspect in an AWOL case. During the investigation, Dmitry underwent an additional military medical evaluation, which confirmed his fitness category. Military investigators ultimately found no grounds for further action and dismissed the case on exonerating grounds.

In Omsk, law enforcement officers have detained a 27-year-old local resident suspected of setting fire to a relay cabinet at the Moskovka station on the West Siberian Railway. According to authorities, the man contacted members of a "Ukrainian terrorist organization" banned in Russia through a chat bot. In the messenger, a "contact person" instructed him to set fire to the railway equipment. The man prepared a mixture for arson and managed to destroy the electrical equipment inside. It is also claimed that he confessed to the crime. Additionally, the detainee is accused of painting slogans "discrediting the Russian government" on buildings. A criminal case has been initiated against him for committing an act of terror.

In annexed Crimea, Turan Ustyugov, a 19-year-old Kazakh citizen, has been arrested. Russian intelligence services believe he was planning to participate in the war on Ukraine's side. According to Ustyugov's mother, he indeed intended to reach Ukraine through Crimea. When he arrived in Simferopol, Federal Security Service (FSB) officers found filled-out forms on his phone for units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine banned in Russia, such as Russian Volunteer Corps and the Azov Brigade. Ustyugov was subsequently detained. His mother does not know whether these forms were genuine or if her son had visited fake websites created by Russian intelligence services. Ustyugov is now accused of attempting to participate in the activities of a terrorist group.

A resident of annexed Crimea has been detained for cooperating with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). According to the FSB, he stored SIM cards for an SBU agent network. A criminal case has been initiated, and the man has been arrested.

In Yerevan, Armenia, police last night released Altay activist Roman Shklover, who had been declared wanted by Russian authorities. He had been detained the day before.

Assistance

Governor of the Primorskiy Region Oleg Kozhemyako has proposed giving apartments to the children of those killed in the war with Ukraine to promote patriotism. According to him, authorities have become too focused on supporting "antisocial families," including providing housing for orphans, while children of war participants have not received similar assistance. "We need the child to understand: ‘Yes, my father committed a heroic act and died, but thanks to his sacrifice, I have an apartment, and I live.’ This fosters patriotism," Kozhemyako added. He also suggested providing housing for children whose fathers became disabled in the war.

Authorities in the Samara region plan to spend an additional 845 million rubles [$8.75 million] for payments to participants in the war with Ukraine. In the Saratov region, housing will be provided to families with multiple children up to 23 years old, where one of the parents is fighting in Ukraine or along its border. The governor of the Leningrad region stated that funding for the rehabilitation program for disabled soldiers might be expanded using regional budget funds. The expenses include prostheses, walking canes and wheelchairs.

Courts in the Vladimir region have sent diesel generators and other equipment to the frontline to support Russian soldiers.

Children and Educational System

At School No. 87 in Voronezh, military exhibits, including mock-ups of combat drones and an RPG-launcher, were displayed on the ceiling.

Miscellaneous

In the Sverdlovsk region, the idea of a sledgehammer hitting a head has been chosen as the best concept for a local youth brand. Rosmolodyozh [Russian Federal Agency for Youth Affairs] and the local Youth House held a design contest for branding ideas, with the winning project featuring a symbol of a sledgehammer hitting a head. Meanwhile, posters with instructions on what to do in the event of a drone attack have appeared in buses throughout Yekaterinburg, the regional capital.

The initiative to display photographs of killed soldiers’ fathers in the State Duma [lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia] originated in Buryatia [Russia's constituent republic]. Denis Leonov, deputy head of the Defenders of the Fatherland Fund in the republic, has received a grant to implement this project.

Longreads

The Sibir.Realii [part of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] online media outlet has published a report on the struggles of soldiers’ families to receive injury compensation and death gratuity payments, which are increasingly being denied. In some cases, families are even trying to contest official documents that cite reasons for death that are clearly inconsistent with the actual circumstances.

Novaya Gazeta Europe [European edition of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta] tells the story of 16-year-old Arseny Turbin, who was sentenced to five years in a penal colony for participating in a terrorist organization. His alleged offense was distributing leaflets criticizing Putin into his neighbors' mailboxes and filling out an application for the Freedom of Russia Legion.