‘Farewell! Glory to Ukraine!’: Ukrainian teen's final moments alive after gunfight with Russian soldiers
27 June 2023, 21:52 | Updated: 28 June 2023, 09:58
Two Ukrainian teenage boys have been praised as heroes after they were reportedly killed in a gunfight with Russian forces.
A video shared online of Tihran Ohannisian, 16, shows the teenager wounded with a bloodied hand and a Kalashnikov - which is a type of rifle - in the other.
In the video which has now gone viral Tihran appears to claim to have taken the life of two Russian soldiers, as he grips to the rifle in his hand.
According to translations, Tihran says: “Two for sure, that’s death, guys. Farewell! Glory to Ukraine!” as he seems to be aware these are his final moments alive.
The boys were allegedly described as “pro-Ukrainian terrorists” by Russian officials who confirmed they killed both Tihran and his classmate, Mykyta Khanhanov, 16, on Saturday. Russian authorities accused the boys of killing a civilian.
While it is unknown exactly how the pair died, it is alleged they fled their homes in Berdyansk last week. Tihran contacted his mother, Oksana Starovierova, who is currently based in Germany, asking for help, the Times reported.
A week after they fled, the boys returned on the Saturday and Tihran even called his mother the same evening.
She said they discussed life after the war and that he seemed even seemed relaxed, unable to sense any signs of urgency.
Both teenagers were arrested last year in September after they were accused of planning to sabotage a rail line to Ukraine.
But both boys were released five days after their arrest, as the media coverage of their case, plus the assistance of Ukrainian organisation Media Initiative for Human Rights, put pressure on authorities to release them.
Despite being released the pair were later placed under house arrest and instructed to visit a police station every day to check in.
It was also reported that Tihran was beaten and tortured by Russian forces as they attempted to get a confession from him.
According to the Times, Tihran’s mother told reporters: “My son was tortured with electric shocks.
“They took him to a field and carried out a mock execution. Russians asked him, ‘Are you going to become a guerilla?’ They ordered him to prepare to die.”
Tihran and his family were split up during the Russian invasion on Ukraine. His mother and sister fled to Germany but the 16-year-old decided to stay in Ukraine to take care of his grandmother.
His mother returned to the country with her husband and daughter months later in January to try and to relocate him to Germany with them - but Russian authorities stopped them, and they were forced to return to Germany without him.
Both Tihran and his classmate Mykyta were charged with sabotage by the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation last month, following September's incident.
The pair were awaiting trial when they were killed on Saturday, accused of damaging railway lines to try and disrupt the delivery of supplies to the Russian armed forces, which can carry a sentence of up to 20 years.
European Parliament called on the Russian authorities to let the boys have access to international organisations and lawyers but neither were ever given such access.
The Media Initiative for Human Rights said in a statement last month that despite European Parliament asking the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and United Nations (UN) to help remove the boys from the city, “there was no response to this call”.
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya speaks to Andrew Marr
It comes days after Wager chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, called off the coup in Russia.
Belarusian president Lukashenko confirmed that Prigozhin arrived in the country on Tuesday, as per an agreement made between the president, Wagner boss and Putin.
But Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, a Belarusian politician who opposes the country's dictator Alexander Lukashenko, warned that Prigozhin may be under threat in her country when speaking to LBC.
