Russian recruits' camps liquidated at three Belarusian training grounds - satellite images

Belarusian Service of Radio Liberty reports.

This refers to military training grounds near Baranavichy, Lepel, and Osipovichi were specifically mentioned.

On a satellite image taken on July 4, 2023, we can see that there is virtually no camp remaining at the "Obuz-Lesnovsky" combat training ground near Baranavichy, as its dismantling was in progress.

The camp had been established since mid-October 2022. In early March 2023, a rotation of Russian mobilized military personnel took place at the camp. A small number of tents were dismantled at that time, with some of them remaining unoccupied. Since then, heavy military equipment has hardly been brought to the area.

As of June 6, there were still about 150 tents in the camp, which could have housed about three thousand people. According to satellite images, the camp was dismantled no earlier than June 30.

Russian forces had also been present at the Lepel training ground since mid-October 2022.

A photo from July 4, 2023 shows that the temporary camp is also being dismantled. The tents began to be removed no earlier than July 2. On that day, there were about 75 tents left at the landfill for about 1,500 people.

The camp at the Repyshche training ground near Osypovychi also began to be dismantled on July 3, 2023. It is no longer visible in the July 4 photo. It had been utilized by Russian military forces even before the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine. It would disappear (in the summer of 2022) and then reappear (on October 30, 2022) periodically. As of June 29, about 30 military tents were standing in that camp, capable of accommodating around 600 individuals.

The three largest training camps for allegedly mobilized Russian military began to be liquidated at approximately the same time - on July 3. Almost simultaneously, the construction of a tent city in the village of Tsel, Osipovichy district, began, which may be related to the arrival of Wagner PMC mercenaries in Belarus. Today, it is the largest camp in Belarus. It consists of at least 303 military tents, which, according to various estimates, can accommodate up to 15 000 people.

The reasons for dismantling the camps are currently unknown. Among the hypotheses put forward by experts are the reduction of the Russian mobilization training program, the relocation of the camps to other testing grounds in Belarus, or possibly their utilization for the deployment of a Wagner PMC camp.

• Recently, Russian media outlets published photos taken by local residents showing an alleged Wagner PMC camp in the Mogilev region of Belarus.