A Marine veteran was killed final week in an jap Ukrainian metropolis the place the nation’s army has been locked for months in intense combating with Russian forces, in accordance with a number of sources.
Cooper “Harris” Andrews, 26, was killed in Bakhmut, the place he was ambushed by Russian forces whereas defending evacuees, journalist Jake Hanrahan tweeted Sunday on Twitter. Hanrahan stated Andrews was killed alongside different “fighters” and was a member of Common Entrance, a grassroots battle journalism platform.
CNN, citing Andrews’ mom, reported Monday that he was hit by a mortar on what Ukrainians name the “Street of Life” as a result of it’s used to resupply its forces and evacuate civilians. The State Division, when reached by Navy.com, would solely verify the dying of a U.S. citizen in Ukraine.
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“We’re in contact with the household and offering all potential consular help,” a spokesman for the State Division stated in an e-mail. The division stated it had nothing additional so as to add “out of respect for the household’s privateness throughout this tough time.”
A corporation calling itself “The Black Headquarter” stated that Andrews was one among its members and that it could “all the time bear in mind him as a courageous fighter and a dependable comrade” in an Instagram publish Sunday.
The group stated Andrews joined them after initially being a member of Ukraine’s Worldwide Legion. Andrews’ mom informed CNN that he left America in November for the Legion, however his contract resulted in March.
Navy.com has beforehand spoken with different fighters within the warfare who equally first joined the Legion earlier than going off to search out different, smaller organizations to struggle with. That is typically accomplished out of a need to be nearer to the entrance traces or to serve with particular individuals.
Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh, the pair of American veterans who had been captured and held by Russian-aligned forces for months, equally joined the Legion earlier than ultimately ending up with “Process Power Baguette.”
Based on data supplied by the Marine Corps, Andrews entered the service in January 2017 and served 5 years as an electronics technician for floor automobiles.
He left the Marines as a sergeant, by no means having deployed. He was final assigned to Headquarters Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
Based on a depend by Process & Function, Andrews is not less than the twelfth American to be killed within the battle and the fourth Marine veteran.
Earlier than Andrews, the final American identified to have died within the battle was Daniel W. Swift, a former member of the Navy SEALs who, in accordance with official data, abandoned the service in March 2019. His dying was reported in January 2023.
In April, Navy.com additionally reported that the household of a extremely adorned Marine officer who went lacking within the early days of Ukraine’s name for overseas volunteers was confirmed killed by his household.
— Konstantin Toropin could be reached at konstantin.toropin@army.com. Observe him on Twitter @ktoropin.
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