Russian residents are growing increasingly angered by Vladimir Putin’s leadership as they are forced to evacuate their homes after pro-Ukraine attacks on Russian territory.
On Friday, border regions of Russia came under fire again.
One of the most frequently hit targets of cross-border shelling, Russia’s Belgorod region, was bombarded by artillery shells and drone strikes in multiple villages, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
At least two women died in a car, multiple people were injured, and apartment buildings, cars, power transmission lines and farm equipment were damaged, he said on Telegram.
The Freedom of Russia Legion, one of the groups that has claimed responsibility for prior attacks on Belgorod, blamed the Russian military for the deaths.
The group alleged the Russian army had mistakenly believed the car belonged to the paramilitary group. Thousands of people have been evacuated from the region, and many roads have been closed.
Air defence systems shot down several Ukrainian drones in Russia’s southern Kursk region, Governor Roman Starovoit reported. In Russia’s Bryansk region, Gov. Alexander Bogomaz said Ukrainian forces shelled two villages, with no reported casualties.
Two drones also attacked energy facilities in Russia’s western Smolensk region, which borders Belarus, officials said.
The attacks on Russian territory forced residents to evacuate but as Russian authorities failed to come up with a coherent plan to protect their citizens, Russians started to fear for their safety and doubted Putin’s plans.
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Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, wrote: “People want to see strong leadership, but right now, that leadership is looking increasingly helpless and confused.”
Abbas Gallyamov, a political analyst and former Putin speechwriter, echoed on Telegram: “The raids in Belgorod completely destroy the myth of Putin’s invincible army. They not only don’t know how to advance, they’re just as bad at defending.
“Nothing can destroy the basis for public support under an authoritarian government more than [weakness].”
In a video posted on Telegram, addressing the Russian government, a student said: “We don’t know who will protect us, who will help us.
“Why do we have to leave the town on our own? Push the front line further [away from us] and save the Belgorod region and Shebekino.”
One resident in Belgorod told DW: “We should withdraw our troops from foreign territory, return Crimea and the occupied territories to Ukraine; the authorities have to take care of their own population first.”
And another one who did not want to share her full name, also said: “Does our government need us?
“They see people from border zones as disposable.”