“A former member of the Irish Armed Forces’ elite Army Ranger wing, Robert Deegan, 29, from Newbridge, Co Kildare, died fighting Russian forces in Ukraine. Source: “European Truth” with reference to the Irish Times Details: It is reported that Deegan was mortally wounded during the fighting for Ukraine last Thursday, although the news of his death in action appeared on Sunday.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
A former member of the Irish Armed Forces’ elite Army Ranger wing, Robert Deegan, 29, from Newbridge, Co Kildare, died fighting Russian forces in Ukraine.
Source: “European Truth” with reference to the Irish Times
Details: Deegan was reportedly mortally wounded fighting for Ukraine last Thursday, although news of his death in action broke on Sunday.
It is unclear whether his remains have been recovered by his Ukrainian colleagues, although several sources in Ireland have said they believe the work is still ongoing.
Although Robert Deegan appears to have had no ties to Ukraine prior to the February 2022 Russian invasion, he was deeply convinced that the Russians must be defeated.
Sources describe him as a very principled man who was determined to play his part in the fight on the side of Ukraine and always intended to return to the war, even after being wounded there two years ago.
In October 2022, while he was driving a car while on duty, he blew himself up with an improvised explosive device. Deegan suffered serious injuries, including to the face, and lost an eye as a result.
He was evacuated back to Ireland, where he underwent treatment and rehabilitation before returning to Ukraine earlier this year. In Ukraine, he was a member of the “Stugna” special unit, a special purpose unit that takes part in complex and dangerous missions.
As it became known, he was mortally wounded while covering the retreat of his team from the area during battles with Russian troops.
Robert Deegan joined the Irish Armed Forces 11 years ago and was promoted to the Army Rangers Wing in 2017. His father is an ex-serviceman who also served in the Army Rangers wing, and his brother is an active serviceman. Sources describe them as a highly respected military family.
Speaking at the UN Future Summit in New York yesterday, President Michael D. Higgins expressed his condolences to the family of the former Irish soldier, calling his death a “horrific tragedy”.
We will remind: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ireland last December confirmed the death of its citizen in Ukraine, who was fighting against a full-scale invasion of Russia.