Friday 30 September 2022 10:11 AM Furious conscripts turn on commander: Top officer 'beaten after saying 'you are ... trends now
A top Russian officer reportedly had his face smashed during a brawl with furious conscripts after telling them their lives were going to be thrown away on the front lines in Ukraine.
The mobilised recruits turned on the Russian lieutenant-colonel after he bluntly said: 'You are all cannon fodder, you are facing slaughter.'
The high-ranking officer had his face 'smashed' and bones in his face broken in a brawl in which 'every single one of them was drunk', say reports.
Many of the reservists - among hundreds of thousands thrown into the war under a Vladimir Putin decree - were left distraught after being told they will die at the front.
However, the commander was likely being accurate in saying the Putin call-up will lead to mass deaths of untrained reservists sent to the front.
It is just the latest tale of chaos, fighting and drunkenness among newly mobilised Russian conscripts, with reports of many being sent to front lines with little or zero training and being told to buy their own supplies and equipment.
A top Russian officer reportedly had his face smashed during a brawl with furious conscripts after telling them their lives were going to be thrown away on the front lines in Ukraine -MailOnline was unable to verify if these images capture the moment
The brawl took place at the Rubin Palace of Sports in Moscow in the Russian town of Penza, where the men have been stationed in a makeshift barracks before being sent into battle in Ukraine
After a counteroffensive by Ukraine this month dealt Moscow's forces heavy battlefield setbacks, Putin called up 300,000 reservists to join the fight
Russian officers - often themselves conscripted - have been advising new recruits to bring their own sleeping bags, tourniquets, medicines and roll mats.
A video shows a punch-up, but it is not clear if this was the brawl in which the officer's face was struck, or just another brawl among disgruntled grunts.
The recruits turned on top brass officer at the Rubin Palace of Sports in Russian the town of Penza, where the men have been stationed in a makeshift barracks before being sent into battle in Ukraine.
Later reports said the unnamed Lt-Colonel's face was 'all smashed' with broken bones.
The brother of a draftee said: 'My brother messaged me just now.
'There was a Lt Colonel walking among [the newly-mobilised], telling them: 'You are all cannon fodder, you are facing slaughter'.
'There was a fight, the colonel's face was smashed.
'They could hardly pull them apart. One person fell sick [after the cannon cannon fodder threat].
'Two ambulances rushed there in one hour. Many people felt sick, many were in tears.
'One tried to escape, they caught him. It's a f***ing nightmare what's happening there .
'There were 1,080 people there now, in Rubin [sports palace]. They'll end up in knife fights, it's a complete mess there.
'All of them are drunk. Every single one of them.'
