Australian charity volunteer killed in Ukraine

An Australian man has died in Ukraine while working for a landmine-clearing charity.

Nick Parsons, 28, was volunteering for the mine clearance charity Prevail Together, which helps to disarm landmines, when he was killed in the city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region earlier this month.

The charity’s co-founder, Chris Garrett, a British bomb disposal expert, was also killed in the incident, which severely injured another volunteer.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed his “deepest condolences and sympathies” to Parsons’ family.

“I can confirm he wasn’t a participant in the conflict, he was volunteering with a humanitarian organisation. I do want to remind Australians that Ukraine is a do not travel zone,” Albanese said at a press conference on Monday.

“The situation is extremely dangerous and we continue to strongly advise all Australians not to travel to Ukraine, under any circumstances.”

Albanese said the government was limited in what it could say publicly about the incident at this time.

Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, paid tribute to Parsons, saying he had sacrificed his life on a courageous mission to help the people of Ukraine.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) said it was providing consular support to the Australian man’s family.

“We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,” a DFAT spokesperson said.

“Owing to our privacy obligations, we are unable to provide further comment.”

In a statement posted on its website, Prevail Together said: “On May 6 Prevail received the devastating news that our founder and chairman alongside other team members was severely injured in an incident near Izyum.

“We are still gathering information and working alongside military and police officials to uncover the details.”

Prevail Together’s website says that the charity works in close co-ordination with the Ukrainian national police and other agencies to eliminate the pervasive threats of landmines, unexploded ordnance, improvised explosive devices and other explosive hazards.

It also provides medical and humanitarian assistance in Ukraine.

“The significance of clearance operations in areas previously marred by conflict cannot be overstated,” the website says.

“As these operations unfold, the primary objective is to render these regions safe for civilians eager to return to their homes and properties.”

Russian authorities announced in April that Melbourne man Oscar Jenkins had been criminally charged for fighting in defence of Ukraine against Vladimir Putin’s invasion.

The Prosecutor’s Office for the occupied territory of Lugansk said it had “approved the indictment in the criminal case against 33-year-old Australian Commonwealth citizen Oscar Charles Augustus Jenkins”, accusing him of being a “mercenary in an armed conflict”.

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