People across Russia are taking to the streets against partial mobilization. Videos from the Republic of Dagestan show particularly violent protests, and warning shots can also be heard. Apparently, a particularly large number of men are drafted in the predominantly Muslim region.
According to civil rights activists, police officers fired warning shots at demonstrators in the Russian republic of Dagestan in the Caucasus during a protest against the mobilization of reservists. In the village of Endirej, residents blocked a road to obstruct the partial mobilization ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the independent organization OVD-Info.
Videos show police officers pointing guns in the air, then shots are heard. Wrangling between residents and officials can also be seen. According to Dagestani media, the protest was a reaction to 110 men from the village being forced into the war against Ukraine.
Videos were later shared on social networks, which are said to show protests in Dagestan’s capital Makhachkala. One shows a police officer slapping an already arrested man in the face. Another clip shows women running in front of a moving police car to stop it. Other videos show how women in particular are protesting against the partial mobilization. They yell “No to war” and chase after a policeman who runs away from them. The “Guardian” correspondent Andrew Roth reported that Dagestan was developing into a “hotspot of anger”. Some places would not allow their young men to be recruited, he wrote on Twitter.
In view of the recent defeats of his army, Kremlin boss Putin ordered last Wednesday that reservists should now also be committed to fighting in Ukraine. Since then, many Russians have been panicking. The Russian war of aggression has been going on for more than seven months.
Muslim Dagestan is one of the regions of Russia from which, according to observers, a particularly large number of men are conscripted. Activists complain that members of ethnic minorities are particularly hard hit by the mobilization and are therefore sometimes even talking about “ethnic cleansing”.
People across Russia protested against the partial mobilization over the weekend. According to OVD-Info, more than 740 people were arrested in 32 cities. The Russian police took brutal action against participants in the anti-war protests banned by the authorities. Videos were published on social networks in St. Petersburg showing men in combat uniform and helmets beating demonstrators. OVD-Info reported, citing eyewitnesses, that the security forces used stun guns.
