ROSTOV-ON-DON, July 7 (RIA Novosti) - There were instances when soldiers died from hazing in the North Caucasus military district in 2005, Russia's defense minister said Thursday during a visit to southern Russia.
After telling reporters that soldiers had died because of bullying, Sergei Ivanov said, "We investigate every case and punish commanders who let it happen."
According to him, the number of soldiers who died in the North Caucasus had fallen in 2005. "However, this is not an excuse," the minister said, adding that the number of soldiers who lost their lives in the district was still high.
Ivanov did not cite any specific figures, but said that some soldiers had also died after carelessly handling weapons or while carrying out military tasks.
Earlier, Alexander Savenkov, the chief military prosecutor, said that the number of registered hazing cases in the Russian army had increased by 25% in 2004 as compared with previous years.
"An increase has been seen in the past two years," Savenkov said. "If the share of hazing cases in crimes in the Armed Forces was previously 11-14%, then now it is 30%."
