Russians threw 10 grenades at him. The story of a national guard defender who repelled an attack and saved his brothers-in-arms

Yana Osadcha, Ukrainska Pravda.Zhyttia — TUESDAY, 2 AUGUST 2022

The chief sergeant of the National Guard with the call sign Yastrub [Hawk] was able to repulse an attack of the subversion and reconnaissance group (SRG) of the Russian forces and save his brothers-in-arms. He is currently being treated for his injuries and plans to return to the army after recovery.

The story of the fighter was shared by the National Guard.

Mykola is 29 years old. He comes from Marhanets, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. He joined the National Guard in 2015, and after 10 months of conscription, he signed a contract.

"I served in the intelligence company for five years, then I was transferred to the operational duty unit. That's where I found myself on 24 February. I immediately asked for the ‘front’ position, where I became the commander of the unit," says the guardsman.

The fighter is serving near Zaporizhzhia, in an area of active fire. At the time of his first combat encounter, he was on duty at the observation post.

The Ukrainian guards had been able to find the radio frequency which Russian forces were using for communication. They constantly listened to their conversations. One day they heard that the Russian troops were planning to advance somewhere, taking with them anti-tank "flies" (anti-tank grenade launchers).

They set out to meet the Russians.

The scout accompanying Mykola went first, and Mykola covered him, keeping behind in the dense forest. Suddenly Mykola heard his brother-in-arms shout: "Stop! Who are you?!"

In response, the Russians demanded that he lay down his weapon. As his comrade bent down, as if to carry out the order, Mykola jumped out of the thicket and opened fire.

"When my comrade was walking away, a bullet hit his gun. In fact, the weapon saved his life, though it usually takes life," says Mykola.

After a minute of fighting, Mykola was hit in the shoulder and seriously injured. The machine gun fell out of his hands. He had to lie down under an earthen embankment nearby, while the Russians threw grenades at him.

"I counted about a dozen RGD explosions, I saw that some of them exploded two metres away. It's a miracle that I wasn't torn to shreds," says the fighter.

At first, the Russian soldiers fired heavily along the forest strip, then the firing subsided. After some time, Mykola heard the approach of a Ukrainian quadcopter. Only then was he able to pull out his phone and dial his commander's number.

"My comrades came running, soldiers from the reconnaissance company also came. They just wanted to evacuate me – the bastards started shooting at the place where I was with machine guns again.

But that didn’t last long – scouts began to strangle the enemy with fire, our mortar joined in. I managed to get away. Moreover, I ran the first four hundred metres alone. Then my head started spinning, my mouth was dry – I had to accept the help of my comrades," says the National Guardsman.

Later Mykola learned that he had managed to kill one Russian soldier and injure another.

The Russians retreated, abandoning their weapons and belongings.

"Everything is fine with me today, my family is near me. The doctors say that in a couple of months I’ll be in the army again. And I will definitely return to keep beating the enemy," says Yastrub.

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