Artur O. Vorona (Ihla)

Artur Oleksandrovych Vorona (callsign "Igla") was born on March 19, 1995, in Sumy, Ukraine, to a family of economists. From a very young age, his parents instilled in Artur a love for the Motherland and patriotism, which ultimately determined his life path. Artur devoted most of his free time from studies to sports - he practiced swimming, volleyball, and especially kickboxing. In addition to sports, Artur also developed intellectually, built his own library, and was fascinated by the works of philosophers, Ukrainian writers, and theorists of Ukrainian nationalism. From November 2013 to February 2014, he participated in the Revolution of Dignity for the renewal and moral rebirth of Ukraine and Ukrainians. At the beginning of the Russian Federation's armed aggression, on February 24, 2015, Artur Vorona made a fateful decision - to defend the Motherland - and began serving in the separate special forces unit of the National Guard of Ukraine "Azov". As a scout (senior machine gunner) of the 1st platoon of the 2nd special reconnaissance combat group of the "Azov" Special Operations Regiment, Sergeant Artur Vorona carried out tasks of special, general military reconnaissance, and counterinsurgency operations against sniper groups. In the first decade of February 2022, his contract service term was expiring, but Artur Vorona, knowing that there was a high probability of a full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation's troops into the territory of Ukraine, continued his service and desperately defended the integrity of the Motherland from the invaders. On April 15, 2022, communication with the commander and Sergeant Artur Vorona was interrupted at the moment when the column of fighters was breaking through from the seaport to "Azovstal" in Mariupol. During the armed resistance, according to his comrades-in-arms, Artur sustained severe injuries, resulting in his death. On June 14, 2022, in the Zaporizhzhia region, another exchange with the Russian Federation of the bodies of the fallen servicemen took place. Ukraine returned the bodies of 64 fallen defenders of "Azovstal", among which, as later established, was the body of Artur. On March 24, 2023, Artur Oleksandrovych Vorona was buried at the Berkovets Cemetery in Kyiv. On May 31, 2023, the Sumy City Council session decided to award Artur Oleksandrovych Vorona the title of "Honorary Citizen of the City of Sumy" (posthumously).