April 07, 2025

They Draw Swastikas, Set Fires, and Break Crosses


They Draw Swastikas, Set Fires, and Break Crosses
Memorial to PMC Wagner leadership in Moscow.  PLATEL, Wikimedia Commons.

According to Sever.Realii, a project of Radio Liberty, desecrations of graves of soldiers killed in Russia’s War on Ukraine have sharply risen. While only three cases were documented in 2022, the number grew to 21 in 2023 and to 25 in 2024.

Vandalism targeting military monuments and graves began soon after the war started, with the first reported case occurring in Russian-occupied Crimea. Valeria Goldenberg, a 61-year-old pensioner originally from Poltava, poured blood and feces on the grave of mortar operator Valentin Isaychev, who was killed in Ukraine. Goldenberg said she acted out of "a sense of revenge and compassion for the people of Ukraine."

Incidents soon spread beyond Crimea, occurring in Russian regions including Tambov, Zabaikalsky Krai, Khabarovsk, Chelyabinsk, Vladivostok, Kaluga, Volgograd, Kuzbass, Chita, and Kaliningrad.

Sever.Realii reported that teenagers are often the perpetrators. For instance, in Volgograd, authorities detained an underage girl; in Promyshlennaya village in Kuzbass, three schoolchildren aged 10 and 11 were detained; and five teenagers from a local boarding school were arrested in Zabaikalsky Krai.

During these incidents, individuals commonly draw swastikas, damage photographs and flags, break crosses, and set monuments on fire.

Not all acts have political motivations. In Chita, a homeless man was arrested after setting fire to a soldier's grave to keep warm. In Kaluga, two teenagers created videos for TikTok, lying down and dancing near graves while displaying the Russian flag.

Sever.Realii notes that criminal investigations occurred in fewer than half of these cases, but prosecutions under the law on damaging military graves have increased. While no convictions were recorded in 2020, four individuals were convicted in 2021. The number rose to 11 in 2022, 12 in 2023, and four individuals in the first half of 2024.

Penalties under this law include fines, forced or compulsory labor, and imprisonment for up to five years.

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