"Mediazona"*: KBR leads in number of "Rosgvardiya" fighters who refused to take part in special operation

More than 500 natives of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) have refused to participate in the special operation in Ukraine and returned to their homeland. Fighters from Krasnodar, Vladikavkaz, Cherkessk, Stavropol and other Russian regions have also left the combat zone. All of them were later fired under a disciplinary article; only a small part of them have tried to challenge their dismissal in court, the "Mediazona"* outlet has informed.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 11, a lawsuit demanding to declare the dismissal of 115 fighters of the "Rosgvardiya" (Russian National Guard) from military service illegal was submitted to the Nalchik Garrison Military Court. The claimants stated that they had not violated the terms of their contracts, since the command did not give the order to continue hostilities. The fighters were fired under a disciplinary article, which deprives them of benefits and chances to conclude new contracts, Andrei Sabinin, an advocate, has explained. On May 25, the above Military Court refused to satisfy their reinstatement claim.

The "Rosgvardiya" fighters who refused to continue taking part in the special operation in Ukraine and returned to Russia, the largest number – about 500 persons – are from the KBR, the "Mediazona"* said in its post dated June 8.

Of the total number of returnees, at least 140 fighters decided to appeal against their dismissal from service in court: 115 "Rosgvardiya" fighters filed a collective lawsuit; other 25 fighters did it separately.

Apart from the "Rosgvardiya" fighters from the KBR, their colleagues from Krasnodar, Vladikavkaz, Khakassia, Pskov and Crimea have also left the special operation zone, and "authorities did the same with all of them – they were fired from service." Pavel Chikov, the head of the "Agora" human rights group, asserts that "the geography of those who have refused to fight is much wider: militaries and 'Rosgvardiya' fighters from 17 cities have turned to human rights defenders." Apart from the above regions, they include fighters from Cherkessk, Simferopol, Novocherkassk, Stavropol and other cities.

*This is a fragment of a message created and distributed by a foreign media outlet acting as a foreign agent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 8, 2022 at 11:01 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.