via: sansnom

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Russian railroads are the target of sabotage six times in 2023
7/7 (Belgium), January 5, 2023 (excerpts)

An eventful start to the year for Moscow: in just five days, “partisans” have managed to damage Russian railroads six times, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. These attacks are making life difficult for Putin’s military trains. Those responsible for these operations are not known at present. However, an anarchist and communist movement, ‘BOAK’, known for perpetrating this kind of sabotage, is the main suspect*.

This is not the first time that traffic on the Russian railroads has been interrupted by guerrilla techniques. This is at least the sixth case of destroyed alarm units, and blocked or damaged railroads, according to Ukraine. In 2022, at least forty sabotages were committed, mainly targeting railway transformers as well as locomotives.

One of the groups responsible for the partial paralysis of military trains is said to be the ‘BOAK’, an anarchist and communist movement that has been taking a stand against the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin for several years now. According to the independent Russian news site ‘The Insider’, ‘BOAK’ is “the most important active subversive force” in Russia since the beginning of the war.

The group’s members are united by the hatred they feel towards the Russian leader. “This is our country, not Putin’s,” they can be heard saying in a YouTube documentary. The beginning of the “special military operation” at the end of February 2022, as well as the mobilization of the Russian people in September, have strongly contributed to the upsurge in sabotage.

“Deepening the crisis”

“Every derailed train means fewer grenades and fewer rockets thrown at peaceful Ukrainian cities,” the collective wrote on Telegram, according to ‘De Standaard’. It is also on this application that the “supporters” communicate. They can share photos and videos of their actions to inspire others. The number of members in the group is currently unknown, but about 30 cells are reportedly active, stretching from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok.

A spokesman for ‘BOAK’ was willing to speak to the news site ‘inews’ after operations this summer to thwart Russian army logistics in Russia and Belarus. “The war in Ukraine is a horrible tragedy, but the conflict brings new opportunities with it. Indeed, the revolutionary minority is trying, through operations, to deepen the crisis in which the system is today,” he said.

* Note of Sans Nom: more precisely, БОАК is the acronym for “Боевая Организация Анархо-Коммунистов”, which means Anarcho-Communist Fighting Organization.