Prominent Ukrainian combat medic Iryna Tsybukh killed on Kharkiv front

Iryna Tsybukh, 25, a well-known Ukrainian combat medic of the Hospitallers Medical Battalion and Suspilne media outlet project manager, was killed on the Kharkiv front, her battalion said on social media.

The medic was killed on 29 May, a few days before her 26th birthday. Tsybukh evacuated wounded soldiers from the battlefield and had earlier created media projects on cities in Donetsk Oblast captured by Russian troops, as per 24tv. 

“It seems like a dream. It seems that soon you’ll get in touch and we’ll hear your voice… Yesterday, during a rotation on the Kharkiv front, our Cheka – Hospitaller, Iryna Tsybukh, passed away. Just a few days before her birthday.

We have no words. No one still believes what happened. This is unspeakable pain and an incredible loss not only for the battalion but for all of Ukraine,” her colleagues said. 

On 16 November 2023, Tsybukh received an award from the President of Ukraine — the Order of Merit.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed condolences to the closest of Tsybukh over the medic’s death.

“Yesterday on the Kharkiv front, Iryna Tsybukh, a combat medic of the ‘Hospitallers,’ died in the war — one of those who not only defended the state but did everything to involve others: trained them and taught them to be effective,” he said. 

Here are some quotes by Iryna Tsybukh:

• “War is the worst place I have ever been, but it grants a ticket to real life, to the world of genuine independence. It tattoos the understanding of the transience of existence.”
• “I want children. I want a house. I want to plant tomatoes… but ending the war is the most important thing.”
• “We need a strategy of memory… Memory shapes society… We need to do it not for ourselves but for future generations. We remember not for the dead, for they have already passed away. We need to do it for those who will know about it in the future. We know it best because we are participants in these events. But there will be many people who will not remember them like we do.”
• “Is this society worthy of the deeds of fallen heroes? The most important thing is the deed itself. Stories are meant to teach us to fight for justice, to punish evil, and to sacrifice ourselves for others. And if others did not deserve it, then it’s just a part of history, emphasizing the courage and truthfulness of the main hero.”

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