Aleksey Mozgovoy

Aleksey Mozgovoy
Birth name Aleksey Borisovich Mozgovoy
Born (1975-04-03)3 April 1975
Nizhnyaya Duvanka, Svatove Raion, Voroshilovgrad Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Died 23 May 2015(2015-05-23) (aged 40)
near Mykhailivka, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine
Allegiance

 Ukraine

 Lugansk People's Republic
Service/branch Ukrainian Armed Forces
Novorossiya Armed Forces
Years of service 1992–???? (Ukraine)
2014–2015 (Novorossiya)
Rank Senior sergeant (Ukraine)
Kombrig (Novorossiya)
Unit Prizrak Brigade
Battles/wars

War in Donbass

Aleksey Borisovich Mozgovoy (Russian: Алексе́й Бори́сович Мозгово́й, Ukrainian: Олексі́й Бори́сович Мозгови́й, Oleksiy Borisovich Mozhovyj; 3 April 1975 – 23 May 2015) was a rebel commander of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic in Ukraine. He was the leader of the pro-Russian Prizrak Brigade.[1]

Biography

Born in Nizhnyaya Duvanka, Svatove Raion, Mozgovoy lived in its administrative center Svatove where he participated in a local choir "Svatove Cossacks".[2] Just before the "Russian Spring" in Ukraine, Mozgovoy (according to Espreso.tv) was a gastarbeiter in Saint Petersburg supposedly as a cook.[2] During the conflict in eastern Ukraine in 2014, he became commander of the military formation "Prizrak" (Ghost). Unofficially his armed group is known as the "Antratsyt Cossacks".[3] Mozgovoy was allied with rebels Defense Minister, Igor Girkin, and had a reputation for infighting with other Luhansk People's Republic rebels.[4] Mozgovoy was known for his contacts with leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, and leader of A Just Russia, Sergei Mironov.[5][6]

Death

Mozgovoy was killed in an ambush between Luhansk and Alchevsk, deep beyond the frontline, together with his press secretary, driver, and six bodyguards.[7][8] Following a roadside bombing, his motorcade was fired upon by machine guns.[9] The LPR press service attributed the attack to undefined "saboteurs".[10] While the adviser to Ukrainian Minister of MVS, Anton Gerashchenko, stated he was assassinated by Russian GRU special forces, citing supposed radio communications.[5][11]He survived an identical attack two months prior to his death and was dismissive of threats to his life [12]

Controversy

In October 2014 he headed a "people's court" that produced a death sentence against a suspect accused of rape by asking the audience to raise hands.[13][14] Answering questions from the audience afterwards, Mozgovoy said that he ordered his patrols to "arrest any woman found sitting in a pub or cafe". After the statement caused significant critical response in Russian media, he had to explain that he said that because he thought that women "should care about their safety", that the intention of the statement was to make people think about morals and that he was not going to arrest anyone.[15][16][17] The statement that caused the controversy was:

If tomorrow I see in a cafe, in a pub even one young lady, she will be arrested ... А woman should be the guardian of the hearth, the mother. And what kind of mothers do they become after pubs? ... A woman should stay in the house baking pirozhki and only celebrate [meaning "drink" in this context] on the International Women's Day. It is time to remember that you are Russian! It is time to get your spirituality back!
— [16]

References

  1. ↑ Allison Quinn (23 May 2015). "Russian-backed military commander assassinated after speaking out against cease-fire". Kyivpost.com. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  2. 1 2 Путін ставить на шапкових отаманів. Луганщина [Putin bets on the "capped" atamans. Luhansk region]. Espreso TV (in Ukrainian). 16 May 2014.
  3. ↑ Чому терорист Мозговий пошле на три букви «генерала Новоросії» Бєса [Why terrorist Mozgovoy tells the "General of Novorossiya" Bes to piss off]. DS News (in Ukrainian). 22 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Kirill Mikhailov; Mat Babiak (6 January 2015). "Something is rotten in the Luhansk Republic". Ukrainian Policy. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Avakov's adviser: Mozgovoy eliminated by Russia's GRU special forces". UNIAN. 23 May 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  6. ↑ "Ukraine crisis: Inside pro-Russia militia training camp". BBC. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  7. ↑ "Commander of 'Ghost' brigade (LPR Army) Aleksey Mozgovoy was assassinated". APA. 23 May 2015.
  8. ↑ "Ukraine crisis: Rebel commander Alexei Mozgovoi 'killed'". BBC News. 23 May 2015.
  9. ↑ Radina Gigova (25 May 2015). "Separatist commander killed in eastern Ukraine". CNN.com. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  10. ↑ "Russian-backed military commander assassinated after speaking out against cease-fire". Kyiv Post. 23 May 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  11. ↑ "Управление ФСБ по «Русскому миру»". Retrieved 2015-07-20.
  12. ↑ google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CDMQFjAFahUKEwi7-JybpOvHAhXwjtsKHQ2jD8U&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.independent.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fworld%2Feurope%2Fukraine-crisis-the-last-days-of-aleksey-mozgovoi-rebel-hero-of-the-ghost-battalion--killed-in-an-ambush-10273837.html&usg=AFQjCNFlpj_ZjdLO0hx_2qie9U003nvUVw&sig2=aBvin3GNFk1OTGs32MLUpw …
  13. ↑ "Rebels in Ukraine 'post video of people's court sentencing man to death'". The Telegraph. 31 October 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  14. ↑ Dina Newman (3 November 2014). "Ukraine conflict: Summary justice in rebel east". BBC. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  15. ↑ По морали военного времени [By the morals of war time] (in Russian). Gazeta.ru. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  16. 1 2 В Алчевске ополченцы запретили женщинам посещать кафе [In Alchevsk insurgents forbade women from sitting in a cafe] (in Russian). Lenta. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
  17. ↑ Мозговой отказался от собственных слов и заявил, что девушек арестовывать не будет [Mozgovoy renounced his own words and stated that he won't arrest young women] (in Russian). Informator.lg.ua. 6 November 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014.

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