British medic who 'died a hero' in Ukraine named as Jonathan Shenkin

The eighth known British national to be killed in the Ukraine conflict has been named as Jonathan Shenkin.

Glasgow-born Mr Shenkin’s family said that he ‘died in an act of bravery’ while working as a paramedic.

The father-of-two was understood to have enlisted in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and “made the ultimate sacrifice to defend values we all believe in," his brother Daniel said.

A spokesperson from the Foreign Office said: "We are supporting the family of a British national who died in Ukraine, and are in contact with the local authorities."

The 45-year-old medic was killed in December, but his family have now identified him in a tribute post shared on Facebook.

Jonathan Shenkin's family described him as a 'hero who died in an act of bravery as a paramedic'

Mr Shenkin, who is survived by his son and daughter, was born and raised in Glasgow, and lived in London and Malta before joining the Israeli Army.

“Spending much of his life helping others, he was notably involved in the 2009 rescue of an American citizen held hostage in the West Bank,” his brother wrote.

Mr Shenkin, also ran his own security business and worked in Iraq, Afghanistan, Oman, Somalia, Angola, Philippines and South Korea, his family said.

He volunteered during natural disasters in the Philippines, and received several awards from the country’s authorities for training hand-to-hand combat, close protection and firearms.

Signing off his tribute, Daniel said his brother lived by the words of Winston Churchill: “All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honour, duty, mercy, hope.”

The Foreign Office advises against all travel to Ukraine following Vladimir Putin’s invasion, which is approaching its first anniversary this month.

It says there is a "real risk to life" and advises any British nationals still in the war-torn country to leave immediately if safe to do so.

Earlier this month the bodies of Chris Parry, 28, from Truro, and Andrew Bagshaw, 47, a British national who lived in New Zealand, were recovered in a prisoner swap with Russian forces.

They were thought to have been killed while attempting a “humanitarian evacuation” in the town of Soledar, in the eastern Donbas region.

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Simon Lingard, 38, from Blackburn, was killed by a Russian shell in November, while in June ex-British soldier Jordan Gatley, from Cheshire, was shot dead in the eastern city of Severodonetsk.

Scott Sibley, from Lincolnshire, died in southern Ukraine in April after a drone dropped mortars on his regiment.

Craig Mackintosh and Paul Urey also died after journeying to Ukraine to volunteer as a medic and aid worker respectively.