Death of a Brazilian model who joined the war in Ukraine

He left modeling and picked up a gun. But the body was torn apart by a Russian missile attack. Just three weeks after joining the war in Ukraine, Brazilian model Thalito do Valle died tragically.

International Desk

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The Daily Beast reports that Thalito, 39, was killed when a missile fired by Russian forces hit a bunker in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. He joined the Ukrainian army as a sniper just three weeks ago.

Thalito also fought against the Islamic State in Iraq before joining the fight in Ukraine. According to local media reports, he received sniper training after joining the Peshmerga Armed Forces in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. He regularly posted videos of the training on YouTube and tickets.

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Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24. About four months later, Thalito joined the Ukrainian army as a volunteer soldier last month.

His brother, Theo Rodriguez Vieira, said Thalito had been in Ukraine for three weeks. There he was working as a shooter as well as rescuing war victims. He also took part in the fight against the Russian army.

This week (Sunday, July 3), Russian forces took full control of Luhansk in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. A day later, Thalito was killed in a Russian missile strike.

Russia, meanwhile, has stepped up attacks on Donetsk, another key Donbass area since the Luhansk occupation. Intense fighting is now taking place between the two forces in this region of eastern Ukraine.

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Ukrainian officials say Russian forces have launched a major offensive to take full control of the Donetsk region.

The provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk in Ukraine are collectively known as Donbas. In 2014, pro-Russian freedom fighters declared two independent republics in the two regions, the People's Republic of Donetsk and the People's Republic of Luhansk.

Since then, they have been fighting Ukrainian forces in the region. Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states two days before the start of the campaign in Ukraine in February.