Russia’s Recruitment Centers Targeted in New Attacks, Multiple Reports Say

Russian and Ukrainian media say multiple military recruitment centers across Russia have become the target of renewed attacks Tuesday (August 1).

Russian security forces-linked media outlet Mash reported at least 20 military enlistment offices have been attacked Tuesday, while Ukrainian outlet Strana reported another nine facilities were targeted with fire attacks.

Those arrested by Russian authorities in connection with the attacks have blamed "scammers," Newsweek detailed.

"Almost all the detainees became victims of telephone scammers," the Russian outlet Baza detailed on Telegram. "They were convinced that their actions help to catch criminals."

Meanwhile, the BBC's Russian-language service verified at least 17 cases of arson have been reported since Saturday (July 29). "The attacks are apparently carried out not by opponents of the war, but by the victims of telephone scammers," the broadcaster added, who were described as elderly or vulnerable Russians.

The Russian Defense Ministry has not provided any comment about the attacks as of Newsweek's report.

'Scammer'-Initiated Attacks

In one of the reported cases detailed by Newsweek, Stavropol oblast governor Vladimir Vladimirov reported to Russian media that a woman attempted to launch a Molotov cocktail at an enlistment center after becoming a "victim of scammers."

A local news aggregator in Russia's Chita oblast also reported on Telegram Tuesday that a teenager had thrown a Molotov cocktail at another local enlistment center believing she was "helping the [Russian] special services."

The type of attack on military recruitment centers has been reported across the country by Russian media, although state-linked and independent Russian sources paint a complicated picture of the reasons behind the attacks.

Either way, Russian media reports have identified two major sets of "scams" to provoke civilians to attack recruitment centers. One of the methods was through monetary extortion, while the other involved people posing as Russian security service operatives.

Meanwhile, the independent Russian outlet Mediazona reported Tuesday that around 113 military recruitment offices have been targeted across Russia, with 21 of which were attacked by individuals who were targeted by scammers.

This development is an interesting series of events this week after Belarusian helicopters violated Polish airspace late Tuesday and Ukrainian drones were allegedly involved in recent attacks on government buildings in Moscow, just blocks away from the Kremlin.

Tags

Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Moscow