Russia’s ‘August curse’ is back as Kremlin brings war home

The month of August was often greeted in Russia with a degree of caution. Russians spoke in whispers of their “August curse” to explain the unusually high number of deadly accidents, terrorist attacks, or outbreaks of war. For a long time now that curse seemed to have been almost forgotten, but this year, it is back with a vengeance, CNN’s Matthew Chance writes in his analysis.

Russians are witnessing an immense rise in Ukrainian attacks, which has brought the Kremlin's war home, forcing Moscow to pay a price and giving regular Russians a taste of the awful violence that Ukraine has endured since last February.

This month, Ukrainian naval drones attacked Russia's military and commercial boats in the Black Sea, jeopardizing Russian supply and trade routes.

Every day in August, the national media has carried stories of small-scale but persistent Ukrainian drone strikes on government buildings, military posts, or commercial and residential properties.

Most drones are shot down, according to officials, by air defense. But enough get through to give Russians pause.

“We’re all shocked that it’s happening here,” one unnamed woman told local media in Moscow.

“But we are not politicians so we don’t want to comment,” she added.

In Russia, opposition has been severely suppressed, notably in relation to criticisms of the Ukrainian war.

Another woman's face was blurred in local media to protect her identity: “I have two kids and want to stop being ashamed that they were born in this time,” she said.

Other Russians appear to be going even farther in their opposition, with August seeing an unprecedented surge in arson assaults against military recruitment centers around the country – more than two dozen fire-bombings in just over a week, according to Russian state media.

Officials claim Ukrainian agents posing as police or creditors calling and pressuring them to act are duping vulnerable populations, like retirees, into carrying out attacks.

However, a source connected to one Russian partisan group claims that Russians are not being coerced, telling CNN that the Kremlin wishes to conceal the growing anger in society.

“If people weren’t angry with the authorities, they wouldn’t do anything,” the source told CNN.

The second week of August brought a mysterious explosion ripped through an industrial plant in the small Russian city of Sergiev Posad, in the Moscow region.

Authorities argue it was a safety lapse at a fireworks business, and they refute reports of sabotage at what was formerly a leading manufacturer of military optical equipment such as night goggles and gun sights.

Despite this, the blast caused large-scale destruction, damaging 440 apartments and 20 private residences, according to Russian official media; destroying 184 cars; injuring 84 people, killing one, and leaving at least eight more missing.

Russia's August curse has returned.