It has been confirmed that Yaroslav Levytskyi, a Ukrainian soldier, entrepreneur and former cameraman for Channel 5, was killed on the Pokrovsk front. The soldier had been missing in action since November 2024, and his death has now been confirmed through DNA testing.

Source: colleagues of Yaroslav from ASS, a Chernivtsi-based news agency; the Contrabanda bar, of which he was a co-founder

Details: Yaroslav began his career as a cameraman at Channel 5’s regional office in Chernivtsi and later worked for the ASS news agency. He also worked on short films by director Dmytro Sukholytkyi-Sobchuk.

His former colleagues shared their memories of the soldier: “Cheerful, sociable, communicative, always friendly – he found common ground with everyone. Yaroslav maintained warm, friendly relations with his colleagues even after leaving work.”

Yaroslav had experience serving in the military communications troops, so at the start of the full-scale invasion, he joined the defence of Ukraine. In the autumn of 2024, he carried out combat missions on the Pokrovsk front, and in November, he was declared missing in action.

Staff at the Contrabanda Bar said that for nearly a year they had kept hoping that Yaroslav was alive and had been taken prisoner. But on 8 September, they learned that his death had been confirmed by DNA testing.

Quote from the bar staff: "Yarik… you were an example of courage and light for us. You went where we hesitated and paved the way for others. Your ‘spirit of adventure’ hoodie was the credo you lived by – you boldly took everyone by the hand and embarked on any adventure with a light-hearted smile.

You knew how to live as if each day was a gift, and you shared this strength with everyone around you. Your courage, sincerity and love of life will remain with us forever."

More details: Director Dmytro Sukholytkyi-Sobchuk, known in Ukraine for his film Pamfir, admitted that he had had a “faint hope” that his colleague’s name would be on the list for a prisoner exchange.

Quote from Sukholytkyi-Sobchuk: "War is ruthless. You are dead. We lived through and did so much together. Long open nights, film screenings, and at every screening, some of the audience would be friends of yours and people who’d responded to your call.

Yarik, you were like Chernivtsi’s Tom Sawyer – it was interesting to get involved in any story with you. Then you’d recount it with such enthusiasm that the desire to join you in new adventures would be irresistible […] The film crews changed, but everyone without exception was attached to you and fascinated by your drive."

More details: Maryna Libanova, creative director of a bookshop in Chernivtsi, wrote on social media that she last saw her friend Yaroslav at the end of October last year, shortly before his disappearance. She admitted that she still cannot believe that he is dead.

Quote from Libanova: "We were friends for so many years, I remember how our friendship began. Our festivals, trips, events, shoots, after-parties, parties, the books we read and the films we watched. Serious conversations, projects, mutual friends, acquaintances – a whole world…

Yarik never called me by my patronymic, always just Maryna. And that wasn’t a privilege, because his number was fifth on my speed dial for many years. We were constantly in touch.

I can’t think or write – goodbye, my friend Yarik… Because I will never forget you. You taught me so much."

Background: On 5 September, it was reported that Oleksandr Hordienko, a 58-year-old Ukrainian farmer who had previously defended his fields with a shotgun and electronic warfare equipment, had been killed in a Russian drone attack in Kherson Oblast.

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