A former British soldier defending Ukraine has died on the front lines of the Donbas area, according to his grieving kin. The shattered parents of Jordan Gatley composed on Facebook that their son was shot and killed by Russian forces in the eastern city of Severodonetsk, which is now stated to be a minimum of two-thirds under Russian control.
“The situation remains difficult,” said Serhiy Haidai, the governor of the Luhansk region. “Fighting continues, but unfortunately, most of the city is under Russian control. Some positional battles are taking place in the streets.”
“He truly was a hero and will forever be in our hearts,” Jordan’s father, Dean Gatley, wrote Saturday.
“Jordan left the British Army in March this year to continue his career as a soldier in other areas. The war against Europe had begun, so after careful consideration, he went to the Ukraine to help,” the father said.
It is unclear when exactly Jordan passed away and how old the fallen solider was.
“We have had several messages from his team out there telling us of his wealth of knowledge, his skills as a soldier and his love of his job,” his dad said. “His team say they all loved him, as did we, and he made a massive difference to many peoples lives, not only soldiering, but also by training the Ukrainian forces.”
Severodonetsk ended up being the center of Russia’s assault on Ukraine in recent days as the Kremlin doubled down on its strategy to capture the Donbas region. Both the Ukrainians and the Russians stated the opposing side suffered considerable losses from the fighting.
Last week, 2 other British nationals were captured by Russians while battling on behalf of Ukraine and sentenced to death.
The leader of the Russian-backed separatist Donetsk region of Ukraine stated Sunday that the 2 soldiers would not be pardoned due to the fact that they are guilty of “mercenary activities.” The Russians also captured a Moroccan soldier volunteering for Ukraine.
