The murder of a military serviceman from the TCK in Pyriatyn represents a red line that must not be crossed. The authorities' response must be swift and severe.
This is reported by RBK-Ukraine citing Telegram from the Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Mykhailo Drapaty.
"The killing of military personnel in the rear is a red line that cannot be crossed. We cannot silently witness the growing wave of disregard for Ukraine's defenders – this is beyond what can be tolerated," he stated.
Drapaty believes that these events do not happen unexpectedly, as there have already been instances of humiliation and aggression against Ukrainian defenders, yet there was no acute societal reaction to them.
"Now we face direct armed attacks. This is how the enemy operates. They work among us while we are busy seeing who liked what. There are no justifications for the murder of a serviceman and the attack on the TCK," he emphasized.
The Commander of the Ground Forces asserts that a swift and strong response from the authorities is the only possible reaction to such lawlessness against military personnel.
"Without just punishment for the murderers, malefactors, and traitors, we will see even more of our brothers killed in the rear. In other cities. In other neighborhoods. At gas stations, in supermarkets, in entrances, on the streets that we name after Heroes," he continued.
Drapaty is convinced that if society "swallows" these attacks, then "bad symptoms will become a diagnosis."
"I want to believe that at this point, this is impossible. Because the only thing that separates us from the enemy is the Defense Forces of Ukraine, the Armed Forces. While we are losing our best people at the front, we must not lose our conscience in the rear. Disregard for a person in a pixel begins where dignity ends," the general concluded.
He assured that Ukrainians must respect those who have taken up arms and risk their lives to protect cities, the people in them, borders, the sky, and the land, "our state, our flag, our home."
Yesterday, on February 1, during the escort of mobilized individuals, an unknown person armed with a hunting rifle attacked a serviceman from the TCK at a gas station in Pyriatyn. He began demanding the serviceman's weapon, and when the latter categorically refused to hand it over, he shot the military officer.
The man succumbed to his injuries at the scene. The perpetrator fled along with one of the mobilized individuals. However, within a few hours, the police apprehended the suspect in the murder of the TCK serviceman along with the mobilized individual who had escaped with him. The shooter faces a sentence ranging from 7 to 15 years in prison.