Russian soldier's daylight assault in Astrakhan sparks outrage

Then, the situation escalated dramatically. He knocked her to the ground and began to kick and pull her brutally. No one reacted, and no one assisted the woman. A wave of comments followed the post.

Horrifying footage is circulating online, showing a brutal scene in Astrakhan. It features a Russian soldier from the Akhmat division attacking a woman in broad daylight, beating her nearly to unconsciousness.

Initially, the video shows the soldier wrenching a child from the woman's arms. Responding to his aggression, the desperate mother approaches the soldier's car and kicks it. In retaliation, the man unflinchingly pounces on her, hitting and kicking her.

This disturbing footage was published by Anton Herashchenko, former deputy minister of internal affairs of Ukraine, who highlighted the alarming rise in such incidents involving Russian soldiers returning from the front.

He points out a serious issue – the aggression and destabilizing influence that soldiers' wartime experiences bring to society.

If they can maim and kill Ukrainian civilians, what will stop them from doing the same in their own country? - asks Herashchenko in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

A flood of comments, filled with outrage and sympathy, appeared under the post. One user wrote: "He tried to kill her. This is madness. Regardless of the backstory, there's no excuse not to help the woman." Commenters expressed shock and disbelief at the bystanders' inaction.

Another commenter noted: "It's sad to see. War is terrible in many ways. Especially when you have an army filled with unscrupulous soldiers," referring to the destructive consequences of conflict that also contribute to increased violence in civilian areas.

Some comments weren't lacking in sarcasm about the situation in the country: "Traditional Russian values" and "They do as they please, Putin too."