GOLD STAR HERO
Ukraine hails most daring spy commando killed in war & reveals his fateful mission to BLOW UP Putin’s £31m nuke bombers
It comes as an Ukrainian kamikaze drone has hit a major oil depot neighbouring Putin's palace
UKRAINE has hailed the astonishing bravery of their most daring spy commando - after he penetrated 375 miles inside Russia to blow up Putin’s warplanes.
Colonel Oleh Babiy, 32, ventured deep inside Russia to destroy one and disable two Russian strategic nuclear-capable supersonic TU-22M3 bombers, each costing £31 million.
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Babiy was posthumously awarded the Hero of Ukraine medal with the Order of the Gold Star by Volodymyr Zelensky last year, but his deeds have only just been revealed.
The planes he destroyed had been used to wreak havoc on Ukraine under Vladimir Putin’s orders.
But Babiy was killed on his mission to protect his comrades from Russian fire, it has now been revealed.
“As part of a reconnaissance group, Oleh Babiy travelled on foot more than 600 km [375 miles] through enemy territory to carry out a special combat mission - to stop terrorist aerial bombings of peaceful Ukrainian cities by Russians,” said his citation.
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“Having penetrated deep behind enemy lines, the scouts completed their task - they destroyed a Russian TU-22M3 bomber and disabled two more, but they themselves suffered irreparable losses.
“Returning to Ukrainian-controlled territory, the reconnaissance group of Colonel Oleh Babiy was ambushed and entered into an unequal battle with the Russian invaders”
While “covering the departure of his fellow soldiers”, he was “mortally wounded and died.
“For his heroic feat, Oleh Babiy was awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine with the Order of the Golden Star, posthumously.”
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Ukraine did not disclose the location of the attack.
However, in August last year a TU-22M3 bomber was destroyed by a kamikaze drone, and there were claims that others were damaged at the Soltsy airfield in the Novgorod region.
At the time the incident was reported to have been undertaken from inside Russia, as a helicopter-style drone was used which could not have flown from Ukraine.
That an Ukrainian spy team was behind it has only just been revealed.
It was the first time such a plane had been completely destroyed by Ukraine.
The hit was a huge embarrassment for Putin and indicated a lack of security and air defences at bases he uses for strikes on Ukraine.
This was one of “nine successful reconnaissance missions behind enemy lines” completed by Babiy.
He also penetrated occupied regions of Ukraine a dozen times “to organise and support the resistance movement in the temporarily occupied territories and behind enemy lines”.
He identified some 70 targets such as enemy command posts, military equipment, and engineering and fortification equipment.
“Thanks to the successful completion of tasks by Colonel Babiy’s group, it was possible to disrupt the logistics of the invaders, destroy important facilities and elements of critical infrastructure,” his citation said.
"Entire units of the Russian occupation forces lost their combat effectiveness, the system of command and control of troops and weapons, suffered a disruption in communication, and then suffered losses in efficiency in interaction with their rear."
The hero colonel was survived by his wife and two children, including a daughter aged one.
The revelations have come just after claims that Ukraine killed 65 of their own prisoners of war.
But, several clues indicate that Russia might be lying.
Meanwhile, an Ukrainian kamikaze drone has hit a major oil depot neighbouring one of Putin's palaces.
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Enormous flames engulfed the sky near the Rosneft oil facility RN-Marine Terminal Tuapse in Krasnodar region, on the main coastal road to Sochi, where Putin's £1bn palace lies.
This was the fourth attack of its kind in just six days.
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