Russian commanders put troops in ‘holes’ in ground as punishment: UK intel

• Russian commanders are punishing soldiers by putting them in holes in the ground covered with metal grilles.
• The makeshift cells are used for misdemeanors, including drunkenness and refusing to fight.
• Enforcing discipline has become more draconian since Gen. Valery Gerasimov took over war command.

Russian commanders are likely punishing their soldiers by putting them in improvised cells consisting of “holes in the ground” covered with a metal grille, the UK Ministry of Defense said.

These makeshift underground cells, known as “Zindans,” are used to punish misdemeanors, including drunkenness and attempting to terminate their contacts.

The ministry pointed to multiple recent reports from Russian personnel about the use of such holes in an intelligence update on Sunday.

The ministry reported earlier this month that Russian troops are dying in Ukraine due to incidents linked to alcohol consumption. There have previously been reports of Russian soldiers getting into drunken brawls, which have sometimes been deadly. 

Since the early days of the war, reports have also emerged of Russian troops mutinying and refusing to fight.

While Russian commanders generally took a light touch in enforcing discipline in the early months of the war and often allowed soldiers to quietly return home if they refused to fight, they have more strictly enforced discipline since the fall of 2022, the UK defense department noted.

These increasingly draconian methods have increased even further since General Valery Gerasimov took over command of the war in Ukraine in January 2023.

Russia has continued to suffer heavy losses in Ukraine. It has not confirmed the number of casualties, but The Center for Strategic & International Studies estimated in February that between 60,000 and 70,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine.