Oleksii A. Yaholnyk (Yakubovych)

Artilleryman Oleksii Yahilnyk (call sign Yakubovych) was killed on February 7, 2023, while defending the city of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region. The defender sustained fatal injuries during enemy artillery shelling. The soldier was 46 years old. Oleksii was from the village of Svitlohirske, Poltava region. After finishing school, he studied veterinary medicine at the Poltava State Agrarian University. In civilian life, he worked at the Svitlohirske brick factory. In 2015-2016, he was mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine and participated in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO). In 2017-2018, he continued his service under contract. A year later, he returned to the military and carried out combat missions in the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) zone. During the full-scale invasion, Oleksii served in the 26th Artillery Brigade named after General-Chorister Roman Dashkevych. He held the position of senior sergeant of the command platoon - battery commander. During his service, the military was repeatedly awarded certificates for conscientious performance of military duties. He received the medal "For Participation in the Anti-Terrorist Operation". "This is the best person I knew. My dad was a man with a big heart, who loved his children incredibly, was kind, smart and brave. He always knew how to support. Friends, acquaintances and relatives will always remember my dad as a very wonderful person," said Kateryna Yahilnyk. The warrior was buried in his native village. At home, Oleksii was awaited by his mother, wife, daughter and two sons.