Rise of National Militia compounds problems for a Ukraine already fighting Russia

KIEV, Ukraine — A dozen men, the oldest just 21, jumped out of a minibus and filed through the main entrance of the ATEK heavy machinery plant in Kiev recently.

They were members of the National Militia, a new patriotic organization that has been recruiting only male Ukrainians for the purpose of “patrolling the streets” to “establish Ukrainian order.”

The vigilante organization announced itself with 600 athletic men in gray military uniforms marching down Khreshchatyk, Kiev’s main street, in late January. Since then, National Militia units have spread all over Ukraine. The organization now has several thousand recruits, said the group’s spokesman, Igor Vdovin.

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