US Marine veteran killed in Ukraine, officials say
Cooper Andrews is one of several American former servicemen killed while fighting in Ukraine since Russia invaded the country
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A U.S. Marine veteran was killed in Ukraine last week, according to an activist group in the country.
Cooper "Harris" Andrews, 26, was hit by a mortar April 19, during a battle for a crucial road to Bakmut, the Resistance Committee said in a statement posted on social media.
He died while defending evacuees alongside others who were killed, the group said.
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People look at the gutted remains of Russian military vehicles on a road in the town of Bucha, close to the capital Kyiv, Ukraine. A former U.S. Marine was killed while fighting in the country, officials said. (AP Photo/Serhii Nuzhnenko)
Andrews joined the Foreign Legion, a group of foreign fighters assisting Ukrainian forces since being invaded by Russia, according to social media posts.
He served in the Marines from January 2017 to Jan. 16, 2022, a U.S. official told Fox News. He was stationed in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, before being discharged as a ground electronics transmission systems maintainer and traveling to Ukraine.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We can confirm the death of a U.S. citizen in Ukraine. We are in touch with the family and providing all possible consular assistance," the U.S. State Department said in a statement. "Out of respect for the family’s privacy during this difficult time, we have nothing further to add."