An Irish volunteer, age 20, hailing from Dublin, is feared to have lost his life in east Ukraine due to a supposed attack by a Russian drone. The Ukrainian military has officially named this young man, Alex Ryzhuk, as missing in action while on duty in the Russian conflict this month.
One Ukrainian medical worker who is acquainted with the event has hinted that the drone of Russian origin might have struck ‘Irlandets’ – ‘The Irishman’, the pseudonym adopted by Mr Ryzhuk. His kin and his partner have received official communication about his unaccounted status with his demise yet to be confirmed.
A representative of the Department of Foreign Affairs has expressed their knowledge and involvement in the case providing consular assistance while maintaining discretion on the individual case specifics.
Born to Ukrainian parents, Mr Ryzhuk – an Irish national who was barely 18 when he journeyed to Ukraine to serve the Ukrainian Foreign Legion. On the 23rd of March, a video surfaced on the Butusov Plus YouTube channel, featuring him communicating in Ukrainian from a military bunker in east Ukraine. Professing himself to be an Irish national from south Dublin, he shared his lack of Ukrainian citizenship while acknowledging his household converse in Ukrainian.
In the footage, he recounts being 17 years old at the onset of the Russian incursion of Ukraine in February 2022, and his keenness to take part in the war. His parents seized his Irish passport in response to dissuade him from travelling to Ukraine. Unfazed, he acquired a new one and joined the Ukrainian Foreign Legion upon turning 18, somewhat deceiving his parents in the process. He hoped they would forgive his actions.
After undergoing training in Kyiv, he aligned himself with the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade, a unit applauded highly and popularised due to their role in the intense war confrontations. Mr Ryzhuk was thereafter stationed with this brigade in Bakhmut, Avdiivka, and Kharkiv.
Earlier this year, Mr Ryzhuk was recognised by his commanding officer for setting a new benchmark in his squad through his innovative use of first-person-view drones (FPVs). He managed to destroy six Russian artillery weapons and eliminate two Russian soldiers in the conflict-ridden Donetsk region, specifically in Avdiivka, Ukraine.
If his demise is verified, he would be recognised as the youngest and fourth Irish national to lose his life fighting for Ukraine against Russian military forces. The 45-year-old Graham Dale, from Raheny, north Dublin, was killed in action in December 2023. Another fellow countryman, Finbar Cafferkey, 45, hailing from Achill Island, met his end during a combat in eastern Ukraine in April 2023. Prior to this, he was a military volunteer with battle experience in Syria, where he aided Kurdish militia against Islamic State.
Lastly, Rory Mason, a 23-year-old from Dunboyne, Co Meath, was killed in the line of duty in September 2022. He was a serviceman for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, fighting under the banner of the International Legion for the Defence of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region.