So far, fighters from the U.S., the U.K. and Georgia are confirmed to have died fighting Russian forces and there are reports that at least one South Korean has also been killed.
Thousands of foreign nationals have reportedly responded to President Volodymyr Zelensky ‘s calls to join Ukraine in its fight against Moscow’s forces and are currently battling the Russian offensive in the war-torn country. On February 27, Zelensky issued a call to foreign volunteers, «friends of peace and democracy,» to join the fight in Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities, some 20,000 volunteers from 52 countries responded and joined the International Legion, the special unit created by Kyiv for foreign fighters. But in a brutal conflict that has already killed thousands of Russian and Ukrainian troops and civilians, the likelihood of dying on the front line is high. The first reports of foreign fighters being killed during combat in Ukraine have started to come in, including a U.S. citizen, two British nationals and four Georgian volunteers. Here’s a breakdown of everything we know so far. Willy Joseph Cancel, a 22-year-old American citizen and former U.S. marine, was killed in Ukraine on Monday, according to family members speaking to CNN. Cancel, originally from Orange County, New York, lived with his wife and 7-month-old baby in Tennessee, where he worked full-time as a corrections officer. After the war in Ukraine broke out, Cancel signed up to work for a private military company which then sent him to fight in Ukraine. Cancel’s mother Rebecca Cabrera told CNN that her son «wanted to go over» because he believed in what the Ukrainians were fighting for and «wanted to be a part of it.» His body has not been found, according to Cabrera. Scott Sibley,36, a former British soldier who had served in Afghanistan, was killed in Ukraine last weekend, according to Britain’s Foreign Office. Sibley, who went to Ukraine as a volunteer, is the first British citizen confirmed to have been killed in the conflict. The British Foreign Office reported that a second unnamed citizen, who had also gone to fight in Ukraine as a volunteer, is currently missing. Defense reporter for The Kyiv Independent Illia Ponomarenko shared a photo of Sibley on Twitter thanking him for his service. «You fought for the most just cause this world knows so far,» the journalist wrote.
