In the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia, the occupiers are confiscating hunting weapons from local residents — CNS
In the temporarily occupied territories of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Russian security forces have begun forcibly confiscating smoothbore hunting weapons from local residents.
According to the Center for National Resistance, the property is being seized under the pretext of allegedly “meeting the needs of the military.”
The occupation administration is attempting to portray the looting as a “voluntary charitable donation.” Specifically, in Melitopol, the invaders have already reported receiving 14 hunting rifles from the local population. According to NRC sources, in reality, weapons are being seized from people under intense pressure. Owners are directly threatened with “trouble” from the Russian National Guard and the occupation police if they refuse.
Ukrainians in the temporarily occupied territories are also being intimidated by surprise searches, regular inspections, and the fabrication of criminal cases for the alleged “illegal possession” of weapons. Due to the real threat of imprisonment and repression, most hunters are forced to hand over their rifles.
The invaders plan to send the smoothbore weapons directly to the front lines. The Russian military wants to use civilian hunting rifles to combat Ukrainian FPV drones.
The Russian military is forced to resort to using this type of weaponry due to significant losses of equipment on the front lines and an acute shortage of specialized anti-drone equipment and electronic warfare (EW) capabilities. The Center for Strategic and Political Studies (CSP) notes that Russia has definitively turned the occupied Ukrainian territories into its own resource base.
It is worth noting that this is not the first instance in which the invaders in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine have confiscated property from the civilian population or tightened police control.
Read also: National Police to prosecute occupiers for torture and sexual violence in Melitopol.
As a reminder, a foreign national was detained in Kyiv for planning a terrorist attack.
The SBU also detained a Russian agent who was guiding airstrikes on Sloviansk.
