Alexander Prokhorenko | |
---|---|
Native name | Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Прохоре́нко |
Born |
Gorodki, Tyulgansky District, Orenburg Oblast, RSFSR, USSR |
22 June 1990
Died | 17 March 2016 Palmyra, Tadmor, Homs, Syria |
(aged 25)
Buried at | Russia |
Allegiance | Russian Federation |
Years of service | 2007–2016 |
Rank | Senior Lieutenant |
Unit | Special Operations Forces |
Battles/wars | Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War |
Awards |
Alexander Alexandrovich Prokhorenko (Russian: Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Прохоре́нко; 22 June 1990 – 17 March 2016) was a Senior Lieutenant with the Spetsnaz division of the Russian Armed Forces. He was killed during the Palmyra offensive of the Syrian Civil War. Prokhorenko was identifying targets for Russian airstrikes when he was surrounded by ISIS fighters near Palmyra and ordered an airstrike on his own location.
On 11 April 2016, President Vladimir Putin declared Prokhorenko a Hero of the Russian Federation, the highest Russian honor. His funeral was held in his home village of Gorodki on 6 May 2016.
Prokhorenko was from the village of Gorodki in Orenburg Oblast, Russia. After graduating from an Engineering School of Anti-Aircraft Missile Defense, he attended the Smolensk Academy of Anti-Aircraft Defense and "graduated the academy with honors". Prokhorenko was married and expecting his first child when he was killed in action.
According to Lieutenant General Sergey Kuralenko, head of the Russian Center for Syrian Reconciliation, airstrikes were carried out according to the orders of Russian special forces in order to keep Palmyra's historical monuments and civilian areas from being inadvertently bombarded. Prokhorenko had been on a mission to direct some of these Russian airstrikes at ISIS targets, when he was discovered and surrounded by ISIS forces. With insufficient time to evacuate, he then ordered an airstrike on his own position.
Prokhorenko's body was recovered and repatriated in coordination with Kurdish YPG forces. It arrived in Moscow on 29 April, according to the Russian Defence Ministry. His repatriation "was a matter of honour for the Russian Defence Ministry", according to a spokesperson.
The authorities of Orenburg decided to name one of the city's streets after Prokhorenko in his honour. A teacher at Prokhorenko's former school is reported as saying that she and others wanted now to rename the Gorodetskoy Middle School after Prokhorenko.