British citizens Chris Parry and Andrew Bagshaw, reported missing in early January in the Ukrainian town of Soledar amid an offensive by Russian forces, died during an attempt to evacuate civilians, their families have confirmed.
Bagshaw’s family said that both were trying to evacuate an elderly woman when their vehicles were hit by a shell, while Parry’s family stressed that both died while «trying to carry out a humanitarian evacuation».
The confirmation, which comes in a statement issued by the British Foreign Office, comes days after the Wagner Group, owned by an oligarch close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said that the body of one of them had been found after the fighting in Soledar, captured by Russian troops and mercenaries.
Parry’s family has stressed that «his selfless determination to help elderly, young and helpless people is a source of great pride.» «We never imagined we would say goodbye to Chris when he had so much life ahead of him,» said Parry. «He was a loving son, a fantastic brother, the best friend to many and a loving partner to Olga,» he stressed, as reported by the British television network BBC.
Thus, he has detailed that Parry traveled to Ukraine in March 2022, «in its darkest moment», before adding that «he saved more than 400 lives, in addition to many abandoned animals». «It is impossible to put into words how much we will miss him, but he will always be in our hearts,» he added.
Bagshaw, a resident of New Zealand, moved to Ukraine in April 2022 for volunteer work. The man’s parents said he and Parry had been delivering food and medicine, as well as helping elderly people, in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
