Russian Penal Units Deployed to Ukrainian Frontlines

Russia is increasing its reliance on penal units to sustain offensive operations, especially in the grinding battles for Avdiivka and Bakhmut. According to the UK MOD and Russian human rights group Gulagu.net, convicts are being mobilized with little training and often under coercion. These penal battalions, originally popularized under Wagner’s command, have now been institutionalized by the Russian MOD. Their use signals both manpower desperation and growing operational brutality.Sources