Mobilization in Russia for Oct. 7-8, 2024 CIT Volunteer Summary

Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising

Recent legislative changes now require conscripts to report to the draft office not only when they receive a draft notice but also proactively on their own. For instance, those who have not received a draft notice during the 2024 spring regular conscription campaign must visit the draft office between Oct. 1 and 14 for a data check-up. The Voyennye Advokaty [Military Lawyers] Telegram channel reminds those serving in the reserve, those over 30 (the maximum conscription age) and those, who have a draft deferment or exemption, that this rule does not apply to them. The lawyers also emphasize that there are no legal consequences for failing to report on one's own initiative. Moreover, the draft office can only impose restrictive measures after serving a draft notice.

Local media in Tyumen note that the entire city is practically saturated with advertisements promoting contract-based military service. These ads were previously only displayed on billboards, but now they appear on fences, in pedestrian underpasses, and even printed on utility bills. Despite this, the local recruitment center claims that there is no shortage of volunteers. They report that, each month, around 300 individuals leave for war from the region.

In the Samara region, draft offices are mailing personalized advertisements for contract-based military service. A subscriber of the Idel.Realii [part of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] online media outlet received one such letter. The front side of the ad states that the region's draft office and recruitment center are selecting citizens for contract-based service in the Russian Armed Forces. Those who conclude a contract are promised a sign-up bonus of 1.2 million rubles [$12,500]. The ad also lists the monthly salary, social benefits and additional bonuses for participating in active offensive operations as part of assault squads. The promised compensation for a year of military service totals 3.7 million rubles [$38,500]. The back of the letter contains information on social benefits and guarantees.

Mobilized Soldiers, Volunteer Fighters and Contract Soldiers

The list of mobilized soldiers killed in the war has been updated to include Sergey Ponomaryov from the Tyumen region, Denis Kondin from the Chelyabinsk region, Artyom Bayandin from the Perm region [Russia’s federal subject], Pyotr Kovalenko from the Irkutsk region, Anton Lapshin from the Tambov region and Rinat Ziganshin from Russia's constituent republic of Buryatia.

The story of Rinat Ziganshin, a mobilized soldier from Buryatia, has been reported by the Lyudi Baikala [People of Baikal] independent media outlet. The 46-year-old father of three children participated in the early efforts to capture the town of Vuhledar in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, where he suffered a concussion. However, Ziganshin was not demobilized and remained in the brigade as a driver, responsible for delivering food to his fellow soldiers. In March 2024, he was transferred to another unit as a signaller, and then in September, he was assigned to an assault unit, where he was killed two days after his transfer, on Sept. 13, 2024.

Journalists from BBC News Russian have identified the commander of the Akhmat special forces from Russia's constituent Republic of Chechnya with the call sign "Haid," who became one of the main spokespeople for Russian propaganda regarding events in the Kursk region following the Armed Forces of Ukraine's offensive. He was identified as Bekhan Yunusov, a former police officer from the Moscow region. After leaving the police force, he spent the period between 2016 and 2018 attacking drug dens and beating their visitors, with his face covered by a mask. In 2019, Yunusov was sentenced to four years in prison and was released on parole approximately two years later. Almost immediately, Yunusov proposed an arrangement to an entrepreneur, offering to resolve their issues with the police in exchange for a fee, and was detained while receiving the money. Yunusov was charged with fraud and to avoid imprisonment, he joined the Akhmat special forces in 2023. He now regularly provides Russian propagandists with commentary on events in the Kursk region, always with his face covered.

Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents

Azamat Iskaliyev, a 35-year-old Storm-Z unit member, who stabbed his girlfriend to death, has been placed in a pre-trial detention center for two months.

According to the Baza Telegram channel, on Sept. 17, a court sentenced a mobilized Moscow resident to seven and a half years in a penal colony for five escapes from his unit. The 30-year-old man reported to a draft office after the beginning of mobilization. He believed that the mobilized soldiers would be released after three months—that is what he was allegedly told at the draft office. After this period passed, he fled and lived in a rented apartment with his girlfriend until she turned him in to the police. The man was returned to his unit, but in October, he managed to escape again and hid at home, where he was later found by military police. He escaped again at the end of January, but his mother persuaded him to return. A month later, he fled the unit again. He was caught only in May, but in August, he managed to escape once more from a military unit in Moscow—this time through a bathroom window. However, he was detained by traffic police inspectors while leaving the city.

According to the NGS – Novosibirsk News media outlet, an unknown person whothrew a bottle with a flammable mixture through the window of the regional Federal Security Service (FSB) office in Novosibirsk on the night of Oct. 3 has been detained. Journalists claim that the detainee also confessed to setting fire to a railway station in the Leninsky district of the city.

The prosecutor's office has presented the indictment against Yevgeny Mishchenko, a volunteer from the Nemtsov Bridge project, accusing him of participating in a terrorist organization. According to investigators, in 2023, Mishchenko, "wishing for Russia's defeat in the special military operation," allegedly "contacted an unidentified person," expressed his desire to join the Freedom of Russia Legion, and "offered his land plot in the village of Tyoploe, Smolensk region, for the placement of rocket launchers." Furthermore, Mishchenko visited a military airfield in the town of Kubinka, filmed it, and sent the footage to the Legion, allegedly as per the unit's instructions.

The Russian Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) has added two children born in 2010, Timur Korchemkin from the city of Odesa and Timur Abdulin from the city of Kirov, to its list of terrorists and extremists. They are now the youngest individuals included in the list. Eduard Abdulin, the father of one of the teenagers, confirmed his son's detention to Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] and called the case against him "complete nonsense." In the list, both teenagers have star symbols next to their names, indicating that they are under investigation for terrorism-related charges. Earlier in October, the FSB reported a large-scale operation across 78 regions of Russia, during which 35 "pro-Ukrainian radicals," including minors as young as 14, were detained.

Aleksandr Matkheev, a 26-year-old resident of the Irkutsk region diagnosed with mild intellectual disability, has also been added to the Rosfinmonitoring list. In June of this year, Matkheev was sentenced to 10 years in a penal colony for attempting to join the Freedom of Russia Legion. His inclusion in the registry suggests that his sentence has now been finalized.

The prisoner who attacked 16-year-old Arseny Turbin was transferred to another cell after media outlets published Turbin's complaint about being beaten by his cellmate.

On Oct. 1, the Dzerzhinsky City Court sentenced a 45-year-old resident of the Nizhny Novgorod region to compulsory treatment. She was found guilty of hooliganism for attempting to set off fireworks at a polling station in Dzerzhinsk. The woman was detained on March 16 during voting. She explained that fraudsters had promised to return a stolen one million rubles if she committed the arson. The police stated that due to her medical condition, she could commit another crime under outside influence.

Assistance

In Saratov, Indian workers will produce military uniforms for participants in the invasion of Ukraine. A hostel is being built to accommodate these workers, which resulted in cutting off the local sports center from public utilities.

Children and Educational System

Memorial plaques honoring graduates killed in the war with Ukraine have been placed on the facade of School No. 6 in Chebarkul. They were installed by former handicraft teacher Igor Dyshaev. In September, he requested that the school administration put up the plaques, but his request was denied. Dyshaev stated that in response, the school principal, Tatyana Smirnova, said, "This is not a cemetery." Afterward, pro-war activists began filing complaints against the school. They also called on the Investigative Committee to conduct an inquiry and disclose the names of the school council members who voted against installing the plaques.

Longreads

Novaya Gazeta Europe [European edition of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta] reported on how soldiers returning from the frontlines are becoming victims of fraud and crime.

Vazhnyye Istorii [IStories, independent Russian investigative media outlet] published a piece on how the Russian authorities manage to increase war spending and who bears the cost.

Lyudi Baikala shared how Russian authorities are seizing and canceling passports, affecting both military personnel and civilians. Meanwhile, the 7x7—Gorizontalnaya Rossiya [Horizontal Russia] news outlet covered the stories of Russians who returned after leaving the country due to mobilization.

Mediazona reported on the case of Irina Navalnaya, a Ukrainian citizen who was sentenced to eight years in a penal colony for allegedly preparing a terrorist attack in Mariupol on the day of the "referendum" on the annexation of the "DPR" to Russia.