Russian newly-mobilised reservists train at a shooting range in the course of Ukraine-Russia war in the Russian-controlled Donetsk region, Ukraine, October 10, 2022 (Photo: Alexander Ermochenko/ Reuters)
Eko Hot Blog reports that two attackers have opened fire on a group of volunteers who wished to fight in Ukraine, leaving at least 11 people dead and 15 more injured at a Russian military training ground.
According to RIA News Agency, the two assailants were shot dead after the attack in the southwestern Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine.
“During a firearms training session with individuals who voluntarily expressed a desire to participate in the special military operation (against Ukraine), the terrorists opened fire with small arms on the personnel of the unit,” RIA quoted a Russian defence ministry statement as saying.
“As a result of the shooting, 11 people were fatally wounded. Another 15 people with wounds of varying severity were taken to a medical facility.”
In a YouTube interview after the attack, Oleksiy Arestovych, an advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine, said the attackers were from the Central Asian nation of Tajikistan and had opened fire on the others after an argument over religion.
Tajikistan is a predominantly Muslim nation, while around half of Russians are Christians.
Although the Russian defence ministry didn’t give details, it said the attackers were from a nation that belonged to a group of nine ex-Soviet republics, including Tajikistan.
The deadly incident is just the latest in a series of major setbacks for Russian forces since the February 24 invasion of Ukraine.
Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a mobilisation of 300,000 Russians who had previously done compulsory military service.
The order sparked protests across Russia, and a surge of people attempting to leave the country.
Last week, Putin announced that over 200,000 people had already been mobilised.
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