A group of Russian women and mothers have petitioned President Vladimir Putin to stop sending their husbands and sons “to the slaughter” by forcing them to join assault units with insufficient training and supplies.
The women said in a video published by the independent Russian Telegram channel SOTA that their loved ones were “forced to join assault gangs” at the beginning of March despite having received only four days of training since their mobilisation in September.
The women are seen in the video holding a placard in Russian that reads “580 Separate Howitzer Artillery Division,” with the date March 11, 2023.
“My spouse… is in direct contact with the enemy,” one woman says in the recording.
“Our mobilised [men] are being sent like lambs to slaughter to storm defended locations – five at a time, against 100 strongly armed enemy men,” she went on to say.
“They are ready to serve their country, but not as stormtroopers because of the expertise they have received. We request that you withdraw our troops from the line of engagement and provide artillery and ammunition to the artillerymen.”
AWN was unable to independently verify the statements made by the women in the video.
Russia’s decision to send hundreds of thousands of troops to fight on Ukrainian battlefields has sparked outrage and driven many Russians, particularly young men, to quit the country.
“We ran away from Russia because we want to survive,” one guy earlier told AWN, requesting anonymity to protect loved ones left behind. “We are concerned about being deported to Ukraine.”
Families of drafted Russian soldiers have condemned the mobilisation, claiming that it is plagued by concerns such as disciplinary issues and a lack of leadership from mid-ranking commanders, as well as logistical issues such as insufficient uniforms, poor food, and a shortage of medical equipment.
