They want a ban and mourning. They hope their voice will reach Putin

The appeal was published on the popular Russian social networking site Vkontakte. It was signed by the heads of 12 public organizations, including Ataman David Badzev, head of the Cossack community branch in Vladikavkaz. Some of its members are fighting Ukraine in the volunteer battalion.

Patriotic and trade union organizations, as well as defense organizations, joined the appeal. human rights – wrote the independent Russian-language portal The Moscow Times.

READ: British Ministry of Defence: Russian losses in February were the highest since the beginning of the war

The authors of the appeal demand in an open letter addressed to the head of the republic Sergei Menyaylo to reveal the losses of compatriots on the Ukrainian front. They estimate that at least a thousand Ossetians died in the war, and the residents of the republic have the right to know about it. Social activists also demanded that Menyaylo declare a week of mourning.

The authors of the appeal also believe that Mieniajło should contact the president Vladimir Putin and ask him to introduce a ban on conscription of residents of the republic, as well as demobilization of those who are already fighting. “Young Ossetians are still dying at the front, the bodies of young people are filling the cemeteries in Vladikavkaz,” the social activists emphasized.

According to calculations by Radio Swoboda, based on open sources, war in Ukraine At least 598 residents of North Ossetia died. This is the third highest among the regions of the North Caucasus. First place in terms of the number of confirmed fatalities is occupied by Dagestan – 1,138 people, second – Stavropol Krai – the radio station noted. These estimates may be significantly underestimated.

In March 2023, at the request of the military prosecutor's office in Vladikavkaz, four websites were blocked that reported on the losses of the Russian army during the war with Ukraine. In all cases, the prosecutor's office made decisions based on “state secrets and the protection of personal data,” Radio Svoboda recalled.

According to independent Russian-language portals Mediazona and Meduza, as well as the Russian section of the BBC, since the beginning of the armed invasion Russia About 120,000 Russian soldiers died in Ukraine.

The General Staff in Kiev reports that the Russian army has lost over 585,000 soldiers since the beginning of the aggression, without specifying how many of them were killed or wounded.