Oleh Sentsov, a Ukrainian filmmaker and writer from Crimea, who spent five years as a political prisoner in Russia, was wounded on the frontline today, on 17 July 2023. He said the US-supplied Bradley armored vehicle saved the crew’s lives under artillery shelling.
“The week was not set. On the first combat sortie after returning, we came under artillery fire during the landing. Bradley saved our lives again. Three injured, mostly shrapnel,” Sentsov wrote.
A week before, Sentsov received a concussion on 9 July 2023 at the front. On 14 July, he announced that he was returning to the front.
“Dragons also die,” Sentsov said in his famous quote, recalling his experience in Russian captivity back in 2019 when Ukrainian victory wasn’t imaginable yet.
Oleh Sentsov was born in Crimea. In 2011, he released his debut feature-length film – The Gamer, which won him critical acclaim. Following the Russian occupation of Crimea, Sentsov was arrested in Crimea on 10 May 2014 and sentenced to 20 years on charges of “plotting terrorist acts.” On 14 May 2018, he began a hunger strike protesting the incarceration of all Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia and demanding their release. Sentsov ended the hunger strike due to health concerns and the threat of force-feeding.
On 25 October 2018, the European Parliament awarded Oleg Sentsov the Sakharov Prize. He was released along with 34 other Ukrainian political prisoners on 7 September 2019.
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