Russia released the video of Oleksandr Matsievskiy's gruesome execution earlier this year thinking it would intimidate Ukrainians. Instead, it's done the opposite and only galvanized their resolve to rid themselves of the hated occupiers, with Matsievskiy's symbolic image of defiance now seen everywhere. They wanted him to beg for his life but instead, he said "Slava Ukraini," (or Glory to Ukraine) before they riddled his body with bullets.

Source: Reuters

NIZHYN, Ukraine, Nov 25 (Reuters) - A Ukrainian soldier who was posthumously awarded a medal after a widely shared video showed him declaring "Glory to Ukraine" before apparently being shot dead, was commemorated with a statue in his northern hometown on Saturday.

The video shared in March showed a man the military later named as Oleksandr Matsievskiy, a sniper with a unit from the region of Chernihiv, saying "Slava Ukraini," a phrase more than a century old that has become a popular expression of resistance to Russia's February 2022 invasion.

Standing smoking a cigarette in a wooded area, carrying no visible weaponry, Matsievskiy is then seen slumping to the ground, apparently struck repeatedly by unseen shooters.

Kyiv has opened a criminal investigation into the death of Matsievskiy, who was quickly talked of as a hero on social media, where many supporters posted the words "Heroyam Slava," or "Glory to the Heroes," the traditional response to Slava Ukraini.

The video released by Russia in March of 2023 that caused such outrage.

WARNING: Graphic content.

And from the ceremony in Matsievskiy's hometown yesterday.