Yuri, 52 years old, is the Ukrainian street vendor of agricultural products who on August 5 was attacked in Kherson, in the south of the country, by a Russian first-person view (FPV) drone after deliberately chasing him before exploding, as seen in the video released by the National Police of Ukraine.
Injured but alive, from the hospital Yuri gave a brief interview to journalist Zarina Zabrisky to explain how at the moment of the attack he was organizing his stand with garlic in his hands, and also how he wanted to show the drone that he only had one of his products in his hands. It was in vain.
“I had garlic, tomatoes, peppers. I didn’t have a phone,” explains Yuri, who despite his attempts to escape the drone points out how “there were about 200 meters to the shelter. Maybe some athletes can run there. I can’t.” He also clarifies that “I am not a military target; I never served in the army.”
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, who also shared the video on X, has stated that this is another example of the so-called “human safaris,” an alleged Russian state terrorism campaign against civilians.
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According to the BBC, the market where the attack occurred is located in the Tavrisk district, in the north of the city of Kherson, an area under constant attack due to its proximity to the occupied territory and the limitations of Ukrainian air defenses.
More than 16,000 civilians have died in Ukraine since the start of the war in 2022, reports the United Nations. The vast majority of deaths have occurred in areas under Ukrainian government control.
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