Saboteurs Who Poisoned 46 Russian Soldiers on the Run in Crimea: Report

Ukrainian saboteurs who allegedly poisoned and killed 46 Russian soldiers are on the run in annexed Crimea, according to a local report.

"In Crimea, they tried to detain the saboteurs who poisoned more than 40 of our military personnel. The criminals killed FSB officers and disappeared," the Russian Telegram channel Kremlin Snuffbox reported on Tuesday.

Kyiv hinted in May 2023 that sabotage cases would grow in intensity. There have been multiple attacks on Russian soil and assassination attempts throughout President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which he launched in February 2022. The Kremlin has blamed the majority of these incidents on so-called "saboteurs"—individuals allegedly carrying out orders from Ukraine.

The latest development comes after a partisan group calling itself the "Crimea Combat Seagulls" said in a post on Telegram in early December 2023 that it had killed 24 Russian soldiers and hospitalized 11 others after giving them the poisoned food and drinks in Simferopol, Crimea. Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed the Black Sea peninsula in 2014.

In late December, the Kremlin Snuffbox channel reported that two "young saboteurs" had poisoned more personnel in Bakhchisarai, Crimea, with pies and beer that contained large doses of arsenic, rat poison and "a poison of unknown origin that experts are studying." The incident allegedly killed 18 and hospitalized a further 14.

Newsweek couldn't independently verify the reports, and has contacted Russia's foreign ministry for comment by email.

The channel, citing unnamed sources in Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) and local police, said Tuesday that "two young saboteurs who had previously poisoned our military in Simferopol and Bakhchisarai" were found in a private home in Yalta.

"The suspects in the death of 46 fighters resisted; unfortunately, it was not possible to detain them," the Kremlin Snuffbox channel said.

"The saboteurs turned out to be well armed and (we did not expect this!) Well prepared. Plus, someone could have warned them about our visit," the channel's FSB source said. "As soon as the special forces arrived to arrest them, they opened fire on them. From pistols and automatic weapons. We only managed to fire a few shots in response.

The source added: "The criminals fled the scene in a car. They abandoned the car on the outskirts of Yalta. We don't know where the saboteurs are now."

Military personnel stationed in Crimea have been asked not to take food or drinks from strangers "to avoid new poisonings," the Kremlin Snuffbox said.

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