Monuments to Russian Heroes Major General Valery Asapov and Senior Lieutenant Alexander Prokhorenko were opened on the territory of the Russian Khmeimim airbase in Syria. This was reported by the Russian defense ministry on Thursday.
"The monuments are about three meters high and represent busts of Russian Heroes Major General Valery Asapov and Senior Lieutenant Alexander Prokhorenko placed on pedestals in the form of columns," the message reads.
Colonel General Andrei Serdyukov, commander of the Russian Armed Forces grouping in Syria and Hero of Russia, personnel of the airbase and representatives of the Armed Forces of the Syrian Arab Republic took part in the opening ceremony of the memorial.
"We bow our heads before the blessed memory of all those who did not return from the battlefield, and with a sense of pride we pronounce the names of soldiers who died in the fight against international terrorism," said Serdyukov at the opening ceremony. - "By opening the memorial busts, we preserve and honor the memory of Russian heroes who honorably fulfilled their military duty in the Syrian Arab Republic. Their exploits will serve as an example for us." The commander stressed that "the servicemen of the group will worthily fulfill the tasks set to strengthen the defense of the country, continue to serve for the benefit of the great motherland - Russia, continuing the heroic traditions of their fellow soldiers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers - soldiers of the Victory."
The commemorative ceremony ended with a minute of silence in memory of soldiers killed in Syria and a solemn march with the military honors. At the end of the event, servicemen laid flowers at the monuments of heroes.
About the heroes
Lieutenant General Asapov, a senior Russian military adviser group in Syria, died on September 24, 2017, near the city of Deir ez-Zor as a result of mortar fire from the Islamic State (IS, banned in Russia - TASS) terrorists. Asapov was at the command post of the Syrian troops, assisting commanders in managing the operation to liberate Deir ez-Zor. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation posthumously.
Senior Lieutenant Alexander Prokhorenko of the Special Operations Forces of the Russian Armed Forces died on March 17, 2016, near the village of Tadmor (Palmyra, Homs province) while performing the task of directing Russian aircraft strikes on IS terrorist targets. Finding himself surrounded, he called the fire on himself. He was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation posthumously.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS