Kathrine Frich
Underground resistance groups aligned with Ukraine have become a persistent feature of the war.
Through sabotage, intelligence gathering, and targeted attacks, these networks say they aim to weaken Russia’s military capacity from within.
One of the most active of these groups has now reported an operation deep inside Russian territory, targeting infrastructure linked to weapons production.
Claimed blackout
The pro-Ukrainian partisan movement Atesh said on Jan. 28 that one of its operatives sabotaged an electrical substation in Russia’s Udmurt Republic.
The claim was published in a post on the group’s Telegram channel.
According to Atesh, the damaged substation is located in the northern part of Izhevsk, the capital of the Udmurt Republic. The group said the action caused a power outage affecting nearby facilities.
Atesh claimed the outage “partially cut power” to the BUMMASH metallurgical plant, which it described as part of Russia’s military-industrial complex.
Industrial target
The group said BUMMASH produces dual-use goods as well as steel and metal products used in weapons manufacturing and heavy military equipment for Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The Kyiv Independent reported that it could not independently verify Atesh’s claims.
The extent of the damage to the substation and the severity or duration of the power disruption were not immediately clear.
Images published by Atesh included a map marking the coordinates of the BUMMASH plant, but no official confirmation from Russian authorities was available.
Partisan campaign
Atesh has regularly claimed responsibility for sabotage operations inside Russia and in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine.
The group presents itself as a decentralized partisan movement working against Russia’s war infrastructure.
Over the past year, Atesh agents have said they sabotaged railway hubs, a locomotive, and a Russian air defense factory.
More recently, the group has focused on substations and other energy infrastructure that supply what it calls “key” components of Russia’s war machine.
Deep inside Russia
Most previously reported operations by Atesh took place closer to the Russia-Ukraine border or in occupied Ukrainian territory.
The Udmurt Republic, however, lies more than 1,300 kilometers, or about 800 miles, from the border.
If confirmed, the reported sabotage would mark the first known Atesh operation in the region.
Sources: The Kyiv Independent, Atesh Telegram
