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While the man executed in this video, which appears authentic according to the UN, has not been identified, he has become a symbol of a nation’s resistance.
By Boris Mabillard
Published on
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Iman wears camouflage with a crest in Ukrainian colors on his upper arm. He stares at the camera casually smoking a cigarette next to what appears to be a trench surrounded by scrawny trees. A Russian voiceover says, “Start the video now. The Ukrainian does not lower his eyes and replies boldly: “Slava Ukraini! » [« Gloire à l’Ukraine ! »] The next moment, he falls dead, mown down by a burst of automatic fire. The twelve-second video ends when we hear the voices of two men, off camera, insulting in Russian the prisoner they have just executed.
The low-quality, heavily pixelated video was first shared on social media in Russia and then went viral in Ukraine, sparking a wave…