RIA Novosti Says Ukrainian Unit 'Ptitsy Madyara' Is Killing Deserters in Kharkiv Region

Overview

• RIA Novosti reports that elements of the 414th Separate Brigade of Unmanned Systems, known as 'Ptitsy Madyara' or 'Ptahy Madyara,' are conducting search-and-destroy operations against alleged deserters in Kharkiv Oblast.
• The outlet attributes the claim to Russian security structures and does not provide corroborating evidence from independent sources.
• A separate RIA Novosti item quotes the same sourcing alleging junior officers from Ukraine’s 3rd brigade have abandoned their posts in the Kharkiv area.
• The RIA reports were published on January 4 and frame the alleged actions as part of ongoing operations in the region.
• The narrative references Vladimir Putin’s earlier assertion that Ukrainian deserters number in the hundreds of thousands and notes Ukraine’s Prosecutor General removed public access to desertion-case data in December.