‘Everyone's afraid to die’: Struggle to recruit soldiers in Ukraine turns violent
Ukraine is facing a growing crisis in military mobilization as recruitment officers encounter increasing violence from citizens avoiding the front lines. The government struggles to balance the urgent need for soldiers with the social unrest caused by aggressive conscription tactics.
Why it matters
This reflects the deepening social strain and exhaustion within Ukraine as the war with Russia enters its fifth year.
Photo taken on March 1, 2022 shows armed personnel in Donetsk. (Photo by Victor/Xinhua)
Vasyl Krupych knows what it is to fight for Ukraine.
He describes terrifying scenes from battles in the eastern Donbas region where, sometimes praying, sometimes crying, the machine gunner somehow survived the onslaught by Russian troops.
But last December, by then serving in the rear, Krupych was attacked by his own countrymen whilst out searching for draft dodgers.
He says two men ignored demands to show their documents and fled. When his patrol gave chase, Krupych was badly beaten with a crowbar. He spent six weeks in hospital.
"He broke my rib, I was lying there and couldn't breathe," the veteran recalled in a recent interview.
"What did we fight for, if soldiers can now get beaten?"
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