Global Affairs won’t confirm reports Canadian dead in Russia was foreign fighter

OTTAWA — Global Affairs Canada says it is aware of the death of a Canadian citizen in Russia.

But the department won’t confirm reports the Canadian was among four foreign fighters who had crossed into Russia to fight for Ukraine.

The Globe and Mail reported today that four foreigners, including at least one Canadian, were killed on Sunday in a firefight in Russia’s Bryansk region, which borders Ukraine.

Asked about the report, a spokesperson with Global Affairs would only say the federal government is aware of the death of a Canadian and that it offers its condolences to family and friends of the deceased.

Russia’s embassy in Canada forwarded The Canadian Press a statement from Russia’s security service saying “four saboteurs” were killed by border agents and soldiers in the Bryansk region on Sunday.

The statement says the four killed were in possession of “foreign-made weaponry” and personal items, including a Canadian flag and a prayer book written in Polish.

It added that one of the soldiers killed had a tattoo suggesting he had been a member of a U.S. army parachute regiment.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2024.