Several Russian conscription offices were targeted by a number of people hurling Molotov Cocktails at them over the last day, in what is believed to be in response to Putin raising the maximum age soliders can be conscripted to fight in Ukraine.
Various clips shared on messaging app Telegram show people throwing Molotov cocktails at the entrances of enlistment buildings in Russian cities.
In one video, published on Telegram by Russian-speaking channel Mash, a man can be seen walking towards the doors of the military registration and enlistment office in the central district of St Petersburg, located in Tchaikovsky Street, and throwing the incendiary device, attracting the attention of a few passersby.
Later in the clip, the same man returns to the building to throw a second bottle.
This time, before being able to launch the Molotov cocktail, the man needs to lightly wrestle a person walking by who attempts to stop him.
In the video, the door can be seen catching fire much quicker after the second attempt.
Another video also shared by Mash shows a woman throwing a Molotov cocktail at the door of Moscow’s military registration office, located in the Kuzminki district.
The woman was immediately detained by National Guard officers, helped by passersby.
Mash reported this fire was quickly extinguished, and the reason behind the attack was being looked into by the police.
Another woman was filmed attempting to sabotage a military enlistment building on Angliyskaya Naberezhnaya Street in St Petersburg.
In the video, she can be seen approaching the building and placing a package by the door before it goes up in flames.
These attacks against military conscription offices weren’t the only ones to take place on August 1, according to pro-Ukrainian Twitter user Igor Sushko.
Mr Sushko claimed more than half a dozen conscription offices have been targeted in the past few hours, with many attackers being identified as pensioners as old as 80.
It isn’t yet clear whether these attacks were coordinated and who could be behind them.
The attacks come after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law raising the upper age limit for Russian reservists by five years in a bid to boost troop numbers last month.
And the Duma is working on a bill which when approved will raise the maximum age at which men can be conscripted from 27 to 30.
