“Verstka” collected hundreds of testimonies of Russian military personnel being killed by their commanders and fellow soldiers, spoke with servicemen and their relatives, and also studied a large number of complaints from the main military prosecutor's office and information from closed chats, and compiled a list of 101 “nullifiers” — military personnel accused of killing their fellow soldiers.
Almost all of them are commanders — from platoon commanders to battalion and even division commanders. For more than 60 of them, we managed to establish almost complete data — full name, age, rank, unit, and place of residence, as well as obtain more than two independent confirmations of “nullification.”
Since the beginning of the war, the main military prosecutor's office has received more than 12,000 complaints related to military executions. The number of complaints began to rise sharply in the second half of 2023. In just the first six months of this year, 23,630 appeals were received, related to missing persons and violations of servicemen's rights. The vast majority of these appeals went unanswered
The average age of “nullifiers” is about 40 years. Among them are dozens of military personnel with state awards, including five Heroes of Russia.
The publication verified the killings of at least 150 military personnel, but journalists note that the real numbers are an order of magnitude higher, considering the “meat assaults” with no return.
The assault company mainly consists of former convicts and so-called “troublemakers,” sources told the publication, noting that anyone who falls out of favor with commanders can end up there.
One can try to refuse a suicidal assault, but in that case, according to the military, death will occur in their own trenches.
Torture in pits and basements is also attributed to nullifications by the military — because most often they end with the victim's death.
Witnesses of executions interviewed by “Verstka” believe that “nullifiers” are either commanders inclined to sadism or those who see no other way to discipline soldiers. But the main reason is money. Nullifier commanders sell the opportunity not to go on assaults, demand bribes, impose levies, and simply rob subordinates: transferring salaries from contract soldiers' cards to their own accounts.
In the main military prosecutor's office, there is an unspoken ban on considering complaints against field commanders, so criminal cases are initiated only in isolated cases — in the most egregious ones. “Verstka” found only ten cases and five convicted “nullifiers.”
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