Mobilization in Russia for Sept. 24-25, 2023 CIT Volunteer Summary
Army Recruitment and Military Service Advertising
In Saint Petersburg, the acting military commissar stated that up to 30,000 city residents will be summoned to draft offices in the course of the regular conscription campaign this fall. He highlighted that residents can be summoned using conventional paper draft notices, as well as registered letters and electronic draft notices on the Gosuslugi public services portal, which will be considered as served seven days after their publication in the registry. The military leadership has yet to announce how many city residents will be conscripted. For reference, 19,000 people reported to draft offices during the spring regular conscription campaign earlier this year, out of which 2,700 went on to serve as conscripts.
The Russian Armed Forces will be forming reconnaissance and assault brigades. Mustering of the new type of military formation has reportedly already begun. These brigades, which will include both assault troops and reconnaissance units, will be equipped with tanks, artillery and drones.
Mobilized Soldiers and Volunteer Fighters
The list of mobilized soldiers killed in the war has been updated to include Ilnar Mamatov from the Perm region, Yevgeny Larin from the Saratov region, Andrey Pavlov from the Yaroslavl region, Yevgeny Skorikov from the Lipetsk region, Shokhruz Choriev from the Ryazan region, Yury Rukinov from the Volgograd region, and Vitaly Golubtsov from Russia’s constituent republic of Bashkortostan.
In the Belgorod region, 22-year-old conscript Vladimir Savelyev from Udmurtia [Russia's constituent republic], has died. The official account states that Savelyev passed away on Sept. 20in a hospital, due to injuries related to an accident. However, his mother claims that the platoon's commander told her that their unit was attacked. According to unsubstantiated reports, six more conscripts died alongside Savelyev.
According to the Astra Telegram channel, the bodies of two Russian soldiers were discovered in the occupied village of Luhivka in the Zaporizhzhia region, both with gunshot wounds to the head. Their fellow soldiers reportedly heard gunfire at 3 a.m. and observed a pickup truck leaving the scene of the murder. The suspects and motives behind the murder remain unknown.
According to Igor Sapko, the Commissioner for Human Rights in the Perm region, there has been an increase in the number of soldiers from the region who have been captured or gone missing in action over the last two weeks. At present, 11 residents of the area are being held captive, while 53 others are listed as missing in action. It has also been reported that the former mayor of the town of Chaykovsky in the Perm region, Aleksey Tretyakov, has been captured.
Doctors at the military hospital in Rostov refused to issue a certificate of injury to a war participant from Buryatia [Russia's constituent republic] which would have entitled him to a one-time payout. Only after seeking assistance from the Military Prosecutor's Office was the certificate issued.
In response to a query from Maria Prusakova, a member of the State Duma [the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia], the Military Prosecutor's Office acknowledged that mobilized soldiers in one of the military units in the Rostov region were left without their required food rations. The food supply was insufficient, including those at the line of contact.
Sentences, Legal Proceedings and Incidents
In the Stavropol region, a 32-year-old local resident was admitted to the hospital with a severe hand injury caused by an explosion resulting in the loss of two fingers. The man claimed that a firecracker had exploded in his hands. However, during an inspection of his car, a grenade primer was discovered, which he could have brought from a combat zone.
The Volgograd Garrison Military Court has found serviceman Aleksandr Kirichevsky guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to his wife by stabbing her in the liver with a knife. The assailant faced up to ten years of imprisonment, but the court sentenced him to three years of probation, taking into consideration his participation in the war and his status as a combat veteran.
The Krasnoyarsk Garrison Military Court sentenced Private Andrey Ivanykin to one and a half years in a penal colony for going AWOL during the mobilization period. He was absent from his unit from February to April 2023.
The Ulan-Ude Garrison Military Court sentenced Corporal Sergey Makhkamov to five and a half years in a medium-security penal colony on charges of going AWOL. He left his service in May 2022 but voluntarily reported to the draft office on July 16, 2023.
In Abakan, a court sentenced contract soldier Ayan Ertin to six years of probation for going AWOL. On Sept. 25, 2022, he did not report for duty, and only on May 18, 2023, did he voluntarily appear at the military commandant's office. Besides, the same court in Abakan sentenced mobilized soldier Fyodor Shtukin to five years in a penal colony for going AWOL. He went home and did not appear for duty from April 6 till May 13, 2023.
A mobilized soldier from Russia's constituent Republic of Tuva, Adygzhy Oorzhak, was sentenced to five years in a penal colony for going AWOL. He signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense immediately after mobilization and left his military unit on Dec. 7, 2022, to help his wife and three children. On April 3, 2023, the man reported to the commandant’s office.
A resident of the Far East, Vyacheslav Reznichenko, has been sentenced to two and a half years in a penal settlement for failing to execute orders during mobilization. As a Baptist, Reznichenko refused to go to war in Ukraine for religious reasons. He reportedly tried to appeal the sentence, applying to five courts.
A mobilized man from Ufa, the capital of Russia's constituent Republic of Bashkortostan, whom his mother was able to bring home, is being sent back to war. A case has been opened against him for going AWOL.
On Sept. 23, a man was detained on the territory of a military unit in Novosibirsk. During questioning, he allegedly confessed to setting fire to the building of the Patrol and Checkpoint Service on the railroad and said that he received the task from the "Freedom of Russia Legion." The detainee is charged with sabotage.
In the Arkhangelsk region, a local resident, 18-year-old Mikhail A., was detained for trying to set fire to a storage facility on the territory of a military unit, allegedly on assignment from Ukrainian intelligence services. A criminal case has been opened against him on charges of an act of terror.
In the Rostov region, a contract soldier along with a friend was detained for throwing a Molotov cocktail at a locomotive. The motives for the arson are unknown. Posts supporting the Russian army and the war were found on the soldier's social media.
In the Krasnodar region, near the Krymskaya station, two relay cabinets were set on fire. An unknown individual also ignited a backup battery cabinet. The fire was quickly noticed, and the arsonist managed to escape. As a result, two passenger trains were delayed for several minutes. A criminal case was initiated under the charge of "Act of terror." The arsonist being sought could face up to 20 years in prison.
In Blagoveshchensk, there was another attempted arson at the draft office. An unknown individual threw two Molotov cocktails at the building. The draft office was not damaged. The arsonist is being sought. Earlier, a man and a woman were detained after taking photos with a Molotov cocktail near this draft office.
Competency to stand trial for Aleksey Rozhkov, accused of setting fire to a draft office in the town of Berezovsky in the Sverdlovsk region, is being determined. He has been sent for a second psychiatric examination that could affect his sentencing. Mediazona [independent Russian media outlet] told Rozhkov’s story in detail earlier.
Persons added to this list of terrorists and extremists:
- Kirill Zamaleev, 18, accused of the "desire" to set a draft office on fire in Perm. He is facing a potential sentence of up to 10 years in a penal colony.
- Veronika Netunaeva, 35, a consultant for the legal department of the administration of the city of Uglich, detained in relation to a "preparing an act of terror" case for allegedly passing "information on strategically important sites" to Ukrainian security services.
- Valeriya Zotova, 19, sentenced to 6 years in a penal colony for an attempt to set on fire a collection point for aid to the military.
A Belgorod court ordered Ilya Ch., accused of setting on fire a Z-installation, has been ordered to be kept at a pre-trial detention facility until Nov. 19. Earlier the man claimed that he had been tortured as he was being detained.
After a memorial alley honoring those killed in the war in Ukraine had been damaged in the Primorsky region, a criminal case has been filed under a penal code article on destroying or vandalizing military burial sites. Perpetrators would face up to 3 years behind bars or up to 3 million ruble [$31,200] fine.
It has been over a year and a half since the full-scale invasion began. During this time, military censorship managed to penetrate all spheres of Russian life. Criminal cases have already been opened against 713 people. 229 people are currently in custody. OVD-Info Telegram channel in its sitrep reports how the Russian authorities suppress any dissent against the war.
Assistance
Volunteers from the Nefteyugansk Warmth for Soldier Z volunteer movement, have opened an exhibition dedicated to the war. Visitors can see items created by the volunteers or help weave camouflage nets. In Volgograd, the United Russia party [Putin's ruling party] organized sports competitions among men who returned from the war in Ukraine as disabled veterans.
Children
The Avangard Center for Youth Military-Patriotic Education has launched military training courses for tenth-grade girls. The first session included 75 schoolgirls. They will be taught the ABCs of Military Affairs by the personnel of the Russian Army, Air Force and Navy Volunteer Society. By the end of the year, an additional 300 schoolgirls are planned to be prepared.
Miscellaneous
The Park of Culture and Recreation in the Zabaykalsky region will launch a mobile museum named the Victory Bus. On the occasion of the museum opening, a solemn meeting will be organized, featuring speeches by combat veterans.
Longreads
In the small village of Lovozero in the Murmansk region, according to activists' estimates, 3% of men were killed in the war. For the Sámi people, the indigenous northern small-numbered community residing there, this represents a profound and tragic loss. The Sever.Realii [part of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] online media outlet has prepared an article detailing the impact of the war on the Sámi community.
Unemployment rate in Russia has reached its lowest recorded level, now standing at just 3%. At the beginning of 2022, the official unemployment rate was 4.2% for both men and women. However, by the summer of 2023, it had decreased by 1.2 percentage points for men and 0.9 percentage points for women. According to Vazhnyye Istorii [IStories, independent Russian investigative media outlet], there has been a notable decline in the unemployment rate in regions that experienced the highest casualties during the war. The regions with the lowest unemployment rates for men include Russia’s constituent republics of Tyva, Mari El, Buryatia, Komi, North Ossetia–Alania and the Nenets autonomous region [Russia's constituent subject], all of which had some of the highest male mortality rates during the war.