War is never pretty, obviously, but Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine appears to be of the particularly dismal variety. His mercenary soldiers are being turned into hamburger meat, and he’s been drafting hundreds of thousands of “regular” soldiers to replace those who have swiftly been killed. He’s still claiming that the war is going well, and says he will surely win, even if his declarations are being called out as false by Ukrainian territories that he claimed to have taken. And to add more insult to plentiful injury, Putin is now being undermined by a bunch of Russian rascals who are doing things like blow up bridges meant to carry valuable war supplies to Russian troops.
Al Jazeera reports upon an early January incident, in which Russian activists took out some tracks on the Trans-Siberian Railway. This wasn’t an isolated instance but apparently the sixth successful attempt since Putin invaded Ukraine, and the organization refers to itself as “BOAK, the Combat Orga.” The outlet spoke with a representative who claimed responsibility and did not mince words:
“We are disgusted by this fratricidal bloodbath, and we believe only by halting Putin’s aggression we can hope for this to stop and to never happen again.”
Journalist Jake Harman also pointed towards an October 2022 incident in which BOAK claimed responsibility for another set of train tracks that were torn to shreds by an explosive device. Al Jazeera notes further word from the BOAK representative, who declared, “The government’s defeat in this imperialist war opens up opportunities for the revolutionary movement, giving people the chance to realise how oppressed they were, and what needs to change.” Putin cannot be thrilled about this group’s existence while his first (official) year of Ukraine warmongering comes to a close.
(Via Al Jazeera)