Human rights activists report a surge in appeals over mobilization rumors. Russians have begun searching en masse for information on how to avoid it

Human rights activists have reported a surge in appeals because of rumors about mobilization. Russians have begun searching en masse for information on ways to avoid it

Human rights activists have recorded a sharp rise in appeals from Russians on issues related to a possible new wave of mobilization and ways to avoid it. This was reported to Vyorstka by the organizations Conscientious Objectors’ Movement (DSO), School of the Conscript and Get Lost.

The DSO said they have seen a noticeable increase in appeals on mobilization issues in recent weeks. The main topics of the inquiries are deferments, obtaining the non-conscription fitness category “D,” and legal and illegal ways of leaving Russia.

“Not only the number but also the nature of the questions is changing. In the spring, people asked: ‘They say there will be mobilization in the fall, is that true?’ — now the wording is different: ‘There will be mobilization in the fall, what should I do?’ Panic is gradually giving way to apathetic readiness for the worst-case scenario,” the DSO says.

Aleksei Tabalov, founder of the School of the Conscript, also said that human rights activists are observing “mild panic among reservists” — the number of appeals from them has increased noticeably. Many questions are being asked about mobilization orders, information gathering and drawing up lists at workplaces, as well as generally about how to avoid mobilization if it begins.

The sharp increase in the number of appeals on mobilization issues was also confirmed by Grigory Sverdlin, founder of the Get Lost project. According to him, the organization is now receiving 150 to 200 such messages a day. “Panic or not, there is definitely a lot of anxiety,” he concluded.

The rise in anxious sentiment is also reflected in search statistics studied by Vyorstka. The number of Russians’ search queries about the possibility of a new wave of mobilization and exemptions from it has reached a record high since the fall of 2022.

According to the Yandex Wordstat service, in July 2026 users entered the words “mobilization exemption” into the search engine 32,000 times, and also searched 28,000 times for information using the phrase “exemption from mobilization.”

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