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Demoralized Russian troops reportedly shoot themselves in legs to avoid fighting

Morale is so low among invading Russian forces that soldiers have reportedly been shooting themselves in the legs to avoid fighting – using Ukrainian ammunition to make it appear they were hit by the defenders.

The Russian troops have been widely reported to be demoralized in the invasion, which has already claimed as many as 14,000 of them, according to the latest estimate from the Ukrainian government.

In a conversation between soldiers intercepted by Belarusian media outlet NEXTA, one Russian said, “They’ve been shooting at us for 14 days. We’re scared. We’re stealing food, breaking into houses. We’re killing civilians,” the US Sun reported.

Russian soldiers have reportedly been using Ukrainian ammunition to shoot themselves in the legs so they can avoid fighting. EPA
The Russian troops are reportedly demoralized in the invasion, according to the latest estimate from the Ukrainian government. EPA
A person mourns next to a wrapped body near a building that was hit by the debris from a rocket in Kyiv on March 17, 2022. AFP via Getty Images

“Russian officers shoot themselves in the legs to go home. There are corpses everywhere,” he continued.

Another soldier was heard saying that his comrades are “looking for Ukrainian ammunition in order to shoot themselves in the legs and go to hospital.”

Deserters face harsh punishment in the motherland, so using Ukrainian weapons and ammo on themselves allows them to make their self-inflicted wounds appear to be battlefield wounds, according to reports.

Captured Russian air force officers answer media questions at a press conference in the Interfax news agency in Ukraine on March 11, 2022. AP
A Police officer walks at the site of a bombing that damaged residential buildings in Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 18, 2022. AP

A soldier who called his mother back home is heard in an intercepted audio saying the disillusioned troops were using 7.62mm bullets fired by their enemies rather than 5.62 rounds fired by their own AK-47 assault rifles, the Mirror reported.


Get the latest updates in the Russia-Ukraine conflict with The Post’s live coverage.


Captured Russian soldiers have been shown on video sobbing as they apologized for killing Ukrainian civilians, including children — and admitted that the invasion ordered by President Vladimir Putin was a “terrible mistake.”

However, footage of captured troops has raised questions about whether Ukraine is violating the Geneva Conventions, which provide POWs with protections.

A man walks past a damaged residential building in the aftermath of a shelling in the Podilskyi district of Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 18, 2022. EPA