The families of those detained by draft officers have clashed with police in Vinnitsa
© Telegram
A mass protest has erupted in the western Ukrainian city of Vinnitsa against Kiev’s increasingly violent – and sometimes deadly – mobilization drive, after draft officers reportedly corralled dozens of men at a local stadium.
The unrest began late Friday after eyewitnesses claimed that around 100 men had been taken earlier in the day to the Lokomotiv Stadium by officers from Ukraine’s Territorial Recruitment Centers (TRC) for processing. As news spread, their relatives – mainly women – gathered at the site, demanding the immediate release of their loved ones.
“They started catching them on the central bridge, brought them here, and locked them behind the gates. We came running because the guys we know asked for help. When we approached, the police began dousing people with tear gas,” local resident Anna Tetervak told Ukrainskaya Pravda.
Videos circulating on social media show protesters shouting “Shame!” at law enforcement and attempting to break through the stadium gates.
Police reportedly deployed pepper spray and detained several demonstrators, according to local outlets and Telegram channels.
The situation remained tense well into the night, with new clashes reportedly breaking out after the start of the 11:00pm curfew.
Police urged residents to disperse, but many refused. Authorities allegedly blocked bridges leading to the stadium to prevent more people from joining the demonstration when the curfew ends at 5:00am.
Additional footage from the scene shows officers using police vehicles to block access roads leading to the stadium, while unmarked minibuses were driven inside the gates. In a desperate attempt to stop the buses from taking the detained men away, relatives o laid down on the asphalt in front of the vehicles, but police forcibly cleared the path.
Kiev’s general mobilization, requiring all able-bodied men aged 25 to 60 to serve in the armed forces, has not been enough to offset continued frontline losses. Numerous videos posted on social media show uniformed press gangs chasing men, dragging them into unmarked minibuses, and assaulting both recruits and bystanders – who increasingly defend the victims – in a practice now widely dubbed “busification.”
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has not commented on the Vinnitsa incident. Newly appointed Defense Minister Denis Shmigal recently claimed that 90% of conscription efforts proceed voluntarily and without issue, blaming the remaining 10% of “scandals” on human error.
However, opposition lawmakers and watchdog groups say thousands of men are being unlawfully detained and that public morale is deteriorating. One lawmaker, Georgy Mazurashu, recently described the mobilization effort as a “shameful hunt” and said soldiers are treated like “slaves.”