through anger protestviolence and the exodus of more than 200,000 civilians, the Russians are rebelling against the possibility of further escalation of war and the high price they will likely pay.
Kremlin officials downplay the turmoil, but the scene emerging from Russia tells a different story. Dissent is being recorded across the country, even in previously quiet areas.
Videos and images reviewed by The Washington Post show Russians are angry and fearing for their lives. Dozens of protests have broken out in large cities and rural areas that have already lost many people to the war in Ukraine. Some resorted to violence, while others chose to flee. waiting for miles of lines to cross the border and out of the country, International flights from Moscow were filled with men of fighting age.
Demonstrations erupted in the predominantly Muslim republic of Dagestan in the North Caucasus on Sunday.soldiers in the area suffered Disproportionately high casualties during the invasion of Ukraine. At protests in the state capital Makhachkala on Sunday and Monday, women Even if I chase local government. “We are for peace,” they chanted 1 video shared widely.
Security forces responded harshly, violently detaining both women and men. About 120 people were arrested in Makhachkala, according to the report. OVD informationan independent group that monitors the protests.
Dagestan’s prime minister, Sergey Melikov, has accused the republic of being part of the mobilization, blaming unrest on foreign influences for “trying to escalate the situation in the country”.
In Endley, a village of about 8,000 people northwest of Makhachkala, a video taken on Sunday showed police firing into the air.According to local telegram channel110 men were called there.
There were further protests in Makhachkala on Monday, where security forces again clashed with locals.
Within hours of Putin’s announcement, protesters took to the streets in several large cities, including St. Petersburg, Perm, Yekaterinburg and Moscow. Police responded with beatings and mass arrests, as they had done months earlier.
Protesters have also emerged in Western Siberia. A video posted on September 21 showed people standing in the central square of Novosibirsk. “I don’t want to die for Putin,” he was hauled away by police.
police surrounded Demonstrators at the main square of the Siberian city of Tomsk on September 21. one protester I was taken out with a piece of paper that said, “If you’re scared too, hug me.”
In a city in eastern Siberia, protesters clashed with police shortly after Putin’s announcement, continuing into the weekend.
and video post In a Telegram on Sunday from the Far Eastern city of Yakutsk, in a poor neighborhood where ethnic minorities bore the brunt of war casualties, women surrounded police and chanted “Let our children live!” .
There have also been attacks on military recruitment offices. Since the mobilization announcement, more than a dozen incidents of violence against military commissions have been reported across the country.
Ruslan Zinin, 25, at the recruitment center in Ust-Ilimsk on Monday morning. shot and seriously injured the chief hiring officerAlexander Eliseev in charge of conscription.
According to Russian news agency TASS, the shooter has been taken into custody and a criminal case has been filed against him.
A video posted on Telegram on Monday showed someone throwing a Molotov cocktail at the enlistment office in the town of Uryupinsk, part of Russia’s southwestern province of Volgograd.
and Statement of the Uryupinsk Administration The information, posted on Russian social media channel VK, confirmed that the enlistment building had been set on fire and that “the erring one was detained.” Officials said the damage was minimal and there were no injuries.
Just hours after Putin’s announcement, the military recruitment office in Tomsk was evacuated following a bomb threat. Media in Tomsk report.
Seeking to avoid war rather than participate in attacks and protests, many young men chose to flee the country. Social media posts and satellite imagery showed miles of cars lined up at Russian border crossings as neighboring countries reported an influx of Russian immigrants.
The line of cars stretched at least nine miles from the Upper Lars checkpoint on the border with Georgia, far longer than the usual backup, said Stephen Wood, senior director of Maxar Technologies. The traffic jam can be seen both in satellite imagery and in videos posted online.
It took many days for Jana and her boyfriend to cross over to Georgia. The 28-year-old, who only gave her first name because she didn’t want authorities to reveal her identity, spoke of the desperate scene at the border.
“People have been standing there for three or four days already,” she said. “Online help chats have been created and people are asking for water, food, diapers and petrol.”
“I’ve seen many things at the border, but I’ve never had a mess like this,” said the tour guide. video Posted on September 22nd.
Georgia’s Minister of the Interior 40-45% more Russians crossing Daily borders from mobilization announcements.
After days of waiting, the couple arrived on Tuesday. “He hadn’t received the summons yet,” Yana said of her boyfriend. “Once he arrives, it’s too late to leave.”
A satellite image captured by Maxar Technologies on Friday showed nearly half a mile (0.5 miles) of vehicles waiting to cross from Russia’s Buryatia to Mongolia.
“Definitely more vehicles are about to depart,” said Wood. The Aug. 15 image, he said, was typical of pre-mobilization traffic, containing only a handful of trucks on the Russian side of the border.
Satellite images taken less than a week after Russia’s announcement also show significant delays on some land routes to Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan’s President Qasim Jomart Tokayev estimated on Tuesday that about 98,000 Russians have entered Kazakhstan since September 21. “We have to take care of them and ensure their safety.”
Filmed at the Mashtakovo border crossing into Kazakhstan and posted on September 22, the video showed cars lined up at the checkpoint and a man walking. Footage recorded late Sunday showed a large number of men still at the border.
“There are many refugees. I feel sorry for them.
Also, many rushed to fly out of Russia.
“The decision to leave was a very difficult one,” said Alexander, 27, who gave only his first name for fear of retaliation. He left behind his family, girlfriend, mortgage, job and booked a flight to Kazakhstan after hearing mobilization. I was nervous and confused at first, but we became friends on the plane. A young Russian man had also fled.
“I’m glad I left and have no regrets, but the future is very uncertain,” he said.
Robyn Dixon and Natalia Abbakumova contributed to this report from Riga, Latvia, and Atthar Mirza from Washington, DC. Mariya Manzhos provided the translation.