Mobilization in Russia for Oct. 27–28, 2024 CIT Volunteer Summary
Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising
The Novosibirsk City Administration has introduced 100,000 rubles [$1,030] sign-up bonus for employees who conclude a contract with the Ministry of Defense to fight in the war against Ukraine. With an additional 600,000 rubles [$6,180] from regional funds and a 400,000 rubles [$4,120] federal component, a city employee stands to receive a total of 1,100,000 rubles [$11,300] upon enlistment. The announcement comes less than two weeks after Mayor Maksim Kudryavtsev complained about a shortage of officials within the city administration.
In the Perm region [Russia’s federal subject], promotion for contract-based military service now appears in emails sent from officials to residents. Advertisement banners are automatically attached to outgoing emails and include details about the salary for military service for one year, the draft office's contact number, and a QR code directing users to the Russian army’s website for the Perm region. Recently, regional authorities increased the sign-up bonus for enlisting to 1.5 million rubles [$15,400]. When combined with federal payments, the total bonus amount reaches 1.9 million rubles [$19,600].
Authorities in Bashkortostan [Russia's constituent republic], have decided to form a unit of female volunteers to support military hospitals in border regions and Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. Governor Radiy Khabirov announced that the region will cover all expenses related to the training and deployment of these volunteers to assist medical personnel.
Mobilized Soldiers, Volunteer Fighters and Contract Soldiers
Another conscript soldier has been reported to be killed in the Kursk region. Ilya Kireyev was conscripted in November 2023 from the Belgorod region and served in the 234th Air Assault Regiment of the 76th Division of the Russian Airborne Troops in Pskov. In May 2024, he and other conscripts were transferred to the Kursk region to build dugouts. On Sept. 14, Kireyev and other soldiers were dispatched to retrieve the deceased when Ilya triggered an explosive device in the Glushkovsky district. His family had been awaiting the return of Ilya's body for more than a month.
The Okno [Window] project has published the story of another conscript killed in the war, Nikita Molochkovsky, whose death was reported a week ago. Molochkovsky was a member of the Nivkh ethnic minority, indigenous to Sakhalin. A month before his death, Nikita attempted to challenge the legitimacy of his contract with the Ministry of Defense in court, as his commander had signed the document on his behalf. His family said that Nikita had no intention of participating in the war and planned to return home following the completion of his compulsory military service. His efforts to contest the forged signature were unsuccessful.
According to the Dos’ye Shpiona [Spy Dossier] Telegram channel, on Oct. 26 in the Russian-occupied territories of the Zaporizhzhia region, Maksim Fedorchenko, a serviceman of the "V" assault company of the 38th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade, had shot ten sleeping soldiers from his unit and fled towards the town of Polohy. The fugitive is being sought. In addition, according to the Dos’ye Shpiona, a day earlier in the Kursk region, the deputy commander of the 2nd Motorized Rifle Battalion of the 810th Naval Infantry Unit, Captain Dmitry Slepnyov, was shot by Private Aleksandr Ryabov during a meeting at the observation post. The shooting was preceded by a verbal conflict.
Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents
In Saint Petersburg, two 19-year-old young men were detained on suspicion of setting fire to relay cabinets on railway sections. According to law enforcement, the youths were allegedly following instructions from handlers via a messaging app, with a promised payment of 115,000 rubles [$1,180], which they ultimately did not receive. They reportedly managed to set fire to five relay cabinets between Ligovo and Strelna, Gorelovo and Krasnoye Selo, and Strelna and Ligovo railway stations. The detainees now face criminal charges for an act of terror.
Under similar circumstances in the city of Ryazan, a 16-year-old previously convicted teenager named Artyom P. was detained for attempting to set fire to three locomotives near the Ryazan-2 station in the early hours of Oct. 23. The suspect was quickly apprehended and reportedly has already confessed. According to his statement, he tried to commit the arson as instructed by an unknown individual online in exchange for payment.
The Moscow regional court sentenced two Belarusian citizens, Kirill Basko and Artyom Bressky, to 12 years in a maximum security penal colony on charges of sabotage. The court also upheld a civil claim by the Russian Railways [Russian fully state-owned railway company], ordering the defendants to pay 2.874 million rubles [$29,600] in damages. Prosecutors had initially requested sentences of 14 and 14.5 years. According to investigators, Basko and Bressky set fire to an electric locomotive at the Orekhovo-Zuevo station depot in exchange for payment.
A lawyer, Lyudmila Kolesnikova, who traveled from Ireland to Crimea for her mother’s funeral, was detained on suspicion of high treason. In June 2024, Kolesnikova arrived in the town of Yalta, where Federal Security Service (FSB) officers detained her in the cemetery and transferred her to a pre-trial detention center. She was not formally charged until October. According to human rights activists, the arrest was allegedly prompted by two NFT stamps featuring a Russian warship meme which she bought for €25. Authorities did not publicly disclose Kolesnikova's case, and news of it emerged only after volunteers published a letter, she wrote from the detention center.
A court in Moscow has arrested animal rights activist and equestrian instructor Yevgeniya Konforkina on charges of treason. The reason for her detention is unknown. Konforkina helped stray animals, and after the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, she tried to transport several horses out of Ukraine but was unable to do so. Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] reported details of this case.
Moscow's Tagansky District Court has fined three more relatives of mobilized soldiers—Anna Bogatchenko, Anastasia Slavik and Lydia Yegorova—for participating in a rally near the Ministry of Defense building on Sept. 21. Each was fined 15,000 rubles [$150] for participating in an unauthorized rally. Previously, five other relatives of mobilized soldiers were fined for taking part in the same rally (1, 2).
According to the Astra Telegram channel, 48 armor plates have been stolen from a defense plant in Podolsk, Moscow region.
Assistance
Rosgvardia [the Russian National Guard] will exempt gun owners who surrender their weapons for use by the Russian army in the war with Ukraine from responsibility for misdemeanors related to arms trafficking. According to the department, individuals will not be punished for late weapon registration. The fine under this charge for individuals is 3,000 rubles [$31]. The department has also launched a service for those wishing to donate weapons for use on the frontline.
In the Nizhny Novgorod region, the National Unity Foundation has been established. It will provide financial support to participants in the military invasion of Ukraine and organize assistance for the frontline, announced Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region Gleb Nikitin.
The government of Buryatia [Russia's constituent republic] has ordered 10,000 commemorative "For Participation in the Special Military Operation" medals. A total of 2.3 million rubles [$23,700] has been spent on this initiative.
Children and Educational System
In Samara, just before the school break, authorities organized anti-terrorism and anti-extremism awareness activities for students. These included assembling and disassembling assault rifles, as well as participating in a military-themed adventure course.
At the Sergiev Posad Socio-Economic College, students attendeda lecture honoring the founding of North Korea's Workers' Party, celebrated on Oct. 10. They learned about the "correct understanding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea" and viewed slides themed "Why We’re Friends with Korea" and "Myths about North Korea." In Khabarovsk, schoolchildren took part in a discussion of Kim Il Sung’s memoirs.
In the Perm region, a ninth-grader suffered a gunshot wound during a Fundamentals of Life Safety class. A bullet from an air rifle struck the 15-year-old student in the temple, and he is now in a neurosurgery unit.
Longreads
The Idite Lesom! [Flee through the woods/Get lost you all] Telegram channel spoke with a Russian soldier who deserted the army and fled Russia, now seeking asylum in France. He is part of a group of six Russian deserters who escaped to Kazakhstan and later moved to Europe on visas. Their stories were also covered by the Bereg independent journalists' cooperative.