An angry crowd attacked and overturned a vehicle carrying draft officers in western Ukraine on Wednesday evening after a press-gang detained a man on the street.
The riot in the city of Lviv is the latest case of spontaneous protests against the ‘busification’ campaign, in which draft officers ambush military-age men in public places and send them to the front line in the conflict with Russia, often using violence against those who resist.
A video from the scene shows protesters accosting the officers before rocking the vehicle and chanting “Shame!”
The regional enlistment office said in a statement that the confrontation began after draft officers and police stopped a man for a routine document check and discovered that he was in violation of unspecified enlistment laws. The man was taken into custody and referred for a medical examination.
Shortly after the detention, an “aggressive” mob blocked a vehicle carrying another group of draft officers at the same location and caused “significant damage” to it, officials said.
Lviv Region Governor Maksim Kozitsky said the rioters should be “identified and brought to justice.” He added that the regional enlistment office would also investigate the actions of the officers. “There is no place for lawlessness,” he wrote on Telegram.
Some recruits and their families have accused the authorities of systematic abuse, ignoring exemptions, and drafting men who are unfit for service as Ukraine struggles with a shortage of troops.
Dmitry Lubinets, Ukraine’s top human rights official, recently requested an investigation into the case of a recruit who died last month in Lviv Region a day after being drafted. According to the man’s family, the authorities failed to notify them of his death for nearly two weeks, and his body showed signs of violence, including multiple bruises.
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