UK fighter killed by fellow mercenary in Ukraine – coroner

Daniel Burke was shot dead by an Australian national, who tried to frame the killing as an accident, but eventually fled Ukraine

A coroner in the UK has established that former British serviceman Daniel Burke, who served in the Ukrainian military, was killed by a comrade a long way from the front line. The fatal shooting occurred in August 2023 in Zaporozhye Region.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed in December that year that its forces had killed more than 5,800 foreign fighters since the conflict flared up in February 2022. Moscow has repeatedly accused foreign “mercenaries” of operating on internationally recognized Russian territory, notably in parts of Kursk Region held by Kiev’s troops since its incursion in early August.

On Friday, the BBC quoted Manchester Area Coroner Zak Golombeck as saying the 36-year-old was “sadly killed by cowardice and dishonor.”

“Whilst there was evidence initially presented that it was an accident, I reject that based on evidence gathered by Ukrainian authorities and Greater Manchester Police,” the official stated. He added that the former paratrooper was “unarmed and unable to defend himself” at the time of his death.

After Burke went missing, Ukrainian police questioned fellow fighter Abdelfetah ‘Adam’ Nourine, an Australian national. He initially told the authorities that he had shot Burke accidentally during drills, the BBC reported.

Nourine led officials to an underground pipe at a military training ground, where the British national’s corpse was buried. His version of events, however, was later found to contradict the conclusions of a post-mortem examination. In addition, according to the BBC, ballistics tests conducted in Ukraine found that the weapon – reportedly an assault rifle – could not have been accidentally fired.

According to the article, Nourine subsequently fled Ukraine and is wanted by local authorities.

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In late October, Sweden’s SVT broadcaster reported that a Swedish national, who had fought alongside Kiev’s forces since 2022, had been killed in action. 

Several weeks later, the family of a 22-year-old British man, Callum Tindal-Draper, who had also fought with the Ukrainian International Legion, told the media that he had also perished at an undisclosed location.  

In November, Russia’s RIA Novosti and TASS reported that another 22-year-old British man had been captured in Kursk Region, approximately 5km inside Russian territory. The news agencies shared video clips purportedly showing the man, who said he had previously served as a signalman in the UK Army.

Around the same time, Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper, citing Italian nationals fighting for Ukraine, reported that foreign fighters were complaining of severe shortages of basic equipment and weaponry.