New Year’s Eve Incident in Chelyabinsk Involving drunken foreigners and former servicemen
Reports from the Russian Investigative Committee note an unsettling incident in Chelyabinsk on New Year’s Eve. A group described as drunken immigrants allegedly attacked two young men who had recently completed military service and insulted their spouses. The confrontation ended with the use of force and the beating of the servicemen, as described by the committee.
Authorities filed a criminal case under the category of hooliganism in connection with the incident. Investigators indicate that there were multiple assailants involved, and the confrontation escalated after verbal insults directed at one of the spouses of individuals who had served in the armed forces. The victims were assaulted with sticks, kicked, and sprayed with substances during the attack, according to a report carried by a television channel. One of the victims sustained an eye injury, and the search for those responsible is ongoing.
Earlier reports from St. Petersburg mentioned incidents involving immigrants receiving Russian citizenship after committing crimes, though the context and details of those cases were not fully elaborated in the same briefing. There were also discussions at the governmental level about draft evasion and citizenship, with some authorities at that time expressing opposition to stripping individuals of citizenship solely for draft avoidance. These recent events in Chelyabinsk are being considered within broader discussions about public safety, immigration, and the role of media in reporting sensitive incidents.