A Ukrainian marine has been hailed a hero after he blew himself up in order to destroy a bridge and halt the advance of Russian troops.
Amid heavy fighting, Vitaly Shakun was charged along with other soldiers of destroying the bridge in the Kherson region near Crimea. However, soon there was no time left to evacuate the bridge before the Russian advance and, as such, the young man chose to kill himself to complete his objective.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Ukrainian government have said the soldier will receive the highest military honour for his sacrifice.
Former president Petro Poroshenko is also armed and in the city. He said of the fighting and the young man's sacrifice:
"We are all here. (Shmygal showing time on phone screen) Our soldiers are here. The citizens are here and we are here. We defend our independence. That's how it'll go. Glory to our defenders, both male and female, glory to Ukraine!"
Adding in a social media post:
"On this difficult day for our country, when the Ukrainian people are repelling the Russian occupiers in all directions, one of the most difficult places on the map of Ukraine was the Crimean Isthmus, where a separate battalion of marines met one of the first enemies. To stop the advance of the tank column, it was decided to blow up the Genichesky road bridge. Shakun, engineer of a separate battalion, volunteered to perform this task. The bridge was mined, but he did not have time to leave. According to the brothers, Vitaliy got in touch and said that he was blowing up the bridge. An explosion was heard immediately. Our brother died. His heroic deed significantly slowed the advance of the enemy, which allowed the unit to redeploy and organize the defense."
The Ukrainian government has vowed to defend the capital Kiev at any cost and the President is known to be in the city rejecting an alleged American offer to leave. He stated, 'I don't need a ride, I need ammunition'.
While the Russian advance has been powerful, independent military analysts have said that they believe the invasion is not going as planned and that the Russians have incurred far more casualties than they had anticipated.
There is a worry that this will result in the Russians carrying out far more violent attacks from the air on the civilian population.
[Based on reporting by: The Daily Mail]
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