At least 25 Russian conscripts have died in the six months since Ukrainian forces launched a surprise cross-border incursion into Russia’s southwestern Kursk region, the investigative outlet Vyorstka reported Thursday.
Many of the conscripts were killed within weeks of the August 2024 incursion, but their names only surfaced in media reports obituaries, and social media posts in recent months, Vyorstka said. One conscript was buried in late December after a four-month search.
The average age of those killed was 20. They came from 18 Russian regions, primarily the southern Rostov and Krasnodar regions, the ethnic republic of Bashkortostan, the Altai region, as well as the northern Vologda region.
Despite President Vladimir Putin’s assurances that conscripts would not take part in direct combat in Ukraine, independent media have documented the deaths of at least 159 conscripts between 2022 and August 2024.
Dozens of young conscripts were captured or went missing following the Ukrainian incursion into Kursk, while those who managed to flee were reportedly pressured into signing military contracts.
Some conscripts exchanged for Ukrainian prisoners of war have been forced back into regions bordering Ukraine, Vyorstka reported.
Russian law states that conscripts can be sent to combat zones only after four months of service and basic training.
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