A disabled Russian veteran pulls a knife on an army recruiter as the Kremlin prepares for a forced mass mobilisation to replenish its depleted forces in Ukraine.
This comes as Russian president Vladimir Putin’s draft officers have already begun rounding up men in the city of Penza, about 350 miles from Moscow, according to reports from encrypted-messaging platform Telegram.
Footage captured the double-amputee brandishing a knife at the officer as he shouts: ‘You are taking kids from their mother! Go f*** yourself’.
Residents have said recruiters accompanied by balaclava-clad men swept through the city to round up civilians. Unconfirmed reports suggest they were ordered to draft hundreds of daily recruits.
The Russian anti-war network Idite Lesom (Get Lost in English) spoke with locals who recounted these targeted raids.
One said: ‘They’re rounding everyone up, stopping cars and public transport, grabbing men and taking them away to sign [military] contracts. Raids are happening all over the city.’
Another added: ‘Everyone is calling each other, warning them not to let their men go outside.
A cashier at a shopping centre yelled at some guy who works there to stay inside and not go outside to smoke because [draft officers] were watching. Panic has set in.’
One heartbreaking video circulating on Telegram appeared to show a van carrying men drafted against their will.
