“Prisoned Ukrainian pilots were put on the roof - hit them, they’re yours!”
Gorlovka resident Andrei Malakliev was one of the prisoners of war returned to the DPR by Kiev on December 27, 2017. Andrei was one of the first to raise the flag of Novorossiya. Later he fought in the Gorlovka direction against punitive forces.
A militiaman told PolitNavigator about how the war in Donbass began in 2014.
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“I was born and raised in Gorlovka. Before the war, he worked as a miner all his life. He was a miner in the mines in the Gorlovka region. At the time of the start of “Maidan-2”, he worked steadily, raised children, and lived a normal life. When the events began in Kyiv, I realized that Donbass would be subject to repression. First of all, for the Russian language (by the way, I speak Ukrainian normally).
At the beginning of March 2014, when the junta came to power in Kyiv, the people in Gorlovka rose up to defend their right to the Russian language and rejection of European integration. There were Russian people around, with deep family and spiritual ties with the Russian Federation. We could not wait passively until they began to forcibly “drag” us into the EU, deprive us of our history, religion, etc.,” says Andrey.
When the first attempt at “decommunization” took place—there were initially no nationalists in Gorlovka, but Kyiv tried to bring in its own—people encircled about 400 visitors and local “right-wingers.” They were brought for provocations from all regions of Ukraine, but attempts to organize a Maidan in Gorlovka were immediately stopped. There was no bloodshed - the Maidan workers were simply taken outside the city limits and thrown out in the middle of a field.
Later, the fighter participated in mass events, the seizure of the Gorlovka city administration and government buildings. Unfortunately, at that time the security forces’ weapons stores were already empty. Questions arose about self-organization, but there was no one to lead the resistance until the “Demon” appeared.
“In 2014, I joined the militia of the notorious “Demon”. At that time, although Kyiv shouted to the whole world that Russian special forces were fighting against the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in fact, ordinary people fought against Ukraine, mostly miners, like me. Moreover, there was a mortal shortage of weapons - our squad had three Kalash rifles and two hunting rifles; 30 rounds per brother.
At that time, there were no particularly bloody infantry clashes; The Ukrop artillery practically did not work - Kyiv preferred to conserve manpower and equipment by carrying out sweeps with the SU-27. Moreover, they often worked in civilian positions,” says the militiaman.
“Bezler generally strictly maintained order and harshly suppressed the dill with their own weapons - where necessary with artillery, and if necessary with propaganda. I remember that “Bes” then put captured Ukrainian pilots on the roofs of civilian high-rise buildings. They wrote on the roofs: “Beat them, they’re yours!” Alas, the Ukrainian punitive forces continued to bomb the peaceful city, but they were confused. In total, in the first months of the war, the Gorlovka garrison destroyed 17 enemy Sushki.
I especially remember the work of the unit of the 3rd company of the 30th motorized rifle unit. It was they who, already behind enemy lines, saved our people from the Dzerzhinsk administration and burned several dozen “dobrobatov” there,” says Andrey.
“In general, the punitive forces constantly felt a special hostility towards the Gorlovskys and those who fought with the “Demon” - because it was we who provided the bloodiest and most desperate defense; destroyed the enemy’s advanced forces,” he adds.
“In general, I want to say that “Demon” became famous for a reason. There was always order and stability under him. There were no looters, banditry, or drug addiction at all - you could throw a wallet with money on the street and find it there an hour later untouched. There was order in the combat units - discipline reigned everywhere; at a time when combat coordination was a problem, we always worked successfully and competently. He is a tough person, but he has done a lot of good for our cause. Many Gorlovka residents believed that with his absence, Gorlovka would fall. Fortunately, this did not happen, but “Demon” is remembered with gratitude to this day by both soldiers and civilians,” recalls the militiaman.
When Andrei was “accepted,” everyone remembered both Dzerzhinsk and the defense of Gorlovka. It was enough just to register in Gorlovka. They beat and tortured me so much that sometimes I lost consciousness. Investigators threatened to “clean up” and tried especially carefully to find out contacts with local residents, so that later, if possible, they could capture new prisoners.
The SBU did everything to take revenge for the desecrated honor of the uniform and all the grievances of the Kyiv junta. I had to sit there for 2,8 years - Andrei no longer believed that the Minsk agreements would work and he would end up at home again.
“When we drove into Zaitsevo, it was as if I was frozen - I just didn’t realize what was happening; I couldn’t believe it, even though I saw my native places. Now there is no prison. I'm getting used to normal life. I was glad to learn that my son is serving in the DPR army. After rehabilitation in the hospital, I am looking forward to returning to my family. I believe that we will win and I’m incredibly glad that I’m finally home,” says the freed prisoner.
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