1942, his unit had at least two BT-7 tanks and one 76 mm artillery gun. By late 1942, the militia of the Lokot Autonomy had expanded to the size of a 14-battalion brigade with close to 8,000 men under arms called the Russian National Liberation Army (RONA). From November 19, 1942, to December 1942, Lokot was inspected by Alfred Rosenberg. In January 1943, the brigade numbered 9,828 people; the armored unit of brigade had in total 11 vehicles: one heavy KV-2, two medium T-34, three BT-7, two BT-5 light tanks, three armored cars (BA-10, two BA-20). In the spring of 1943, the brigade's structure was reorganized. There were five regiments created with three battalions in each, anti-aircraft battalion (three AA guns and four heavy machine guns), armored unit. A separate "guard" battalion was created, with brigade strength estimated to be 12,000 men in total.e Before Operation Citadel, the massive offensive to destroy the Kursk salient, in May–June 1943, the brigade took part in Operation Zigeunerbaron ("Gypsy Baron") together with other German units. Similar operations followed this operation, such as Freischütz and Tannhäuser, in which the brigade and other units under German command were involved in action against partisans and also took part in reprisal operations against the civilian population. In the summer of 1943, the brigade began to suffer significant desertions, due in part to the recent Soviet victories and the partisans' efforts to "turn" as many of Kaminski's troops as possible. As a part of these efforts, several attempts on Kaminski's life were carried out. Each time, Kaminski narrowly avoided death and punished the conspirators with execution. Several German officers passing through Lokot reported seeing bodies hanging from gallows outside Kaminski's headquarters. Fearing a breakdown in command, a German liaison staff was attached to Kaminski's HQ to restructure the brigade and return stability to the unit. After the German failure of Citadel, the Soviet counteroffensives forced the brigade, along with their families, to flee with the retreating Germans. On the 29th of July, 1943, Kaminski issued an order to evacuate the RONA brigade and Lokot authorities' property and families. Germans transferred up to 30 thousand persons (10-11,000 of them were brigade members) to the Lepel area of Vitebsk in Belarus by the end of August 1943. By September 1943, the force had 10,000 men, divided into: 5 infantry regiments, each of 3 battalions, one artillery battalion (36 field guns),