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Disturbing footage shows a Russian man showing his support for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine by mutilating himself.
Belarusian media outlet Nexta posted the clip where a shirtless man can be seen sitting cross-legged in what looks like a shed.
Another man heats up the ‘Z’ poker offscreen before he presses it against his friend’s chest.
The supporter then stands up and yells in Russian with his fist in the air.
The ‘Z’ symbol first made headlines after it was seen on several Russian tanks near the Ukrainian border.
A military source from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, told The Sun that the symbol was being used to distinguish their vehicles from their enemy’s.
It is still not known why Russia picked ‘Z’ as their symbol to mark their vehicles, but some have suggested that it might be linked to the Russian version of ‘for the victory’ (За победу) which is pronounced ‘za pobedu’.
The man had a friend heat up the ‘Z’ shaped hot poker and press it into his chest
The mutilation will last permanently on the Putin-supporter’s body
This theory seems to be supported by an official post made by the Russian defence ministry.
The account shared photos of Soviet soldiers and Russian soldiers, with the ‘Z’ super-imposed on them. And, right next to the symbol it said ‘for the victory’.
Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak came under fire in March, when he strapped a white letter ‘Z’ onto his leotard at the Doha World Cup.
Kuliak cruelly pulled the stint while he was standing next to Ukrainian athlete Illia Kovtun during a medal ceremony.
Russia’s two-time Olympic gold medallist Svetlana Khorkina has also shown her support of Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.
She posted an image of the ‘Z’ symbol with the caption: ‘A campaign for those who are not ashamed to be Russian. Let’s spread it.’
The International Gymnastics Federation has since banned all Russian and Belarusian gymnasts from international competitions indefinitely.
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