British man, 22, from Solihull killed fighting in east Ukraine

A British man has been killed while fighting in east Ukraine, his family have said.

Samuel Newey, a 22-year-old from Solihull, had been volunteering as a fighter in Ukraine for more than a year before he was killed.

In a post on Facebook, his brother Daniel Newey said: “My little brother Sam was killed in action yesterday in Eastern Ukraine.

“I cannot put into words how broken I feel. I also cannot emphasise how proud I am of my little brother. He’d just turned 21 when he decided to answer the call and travel to Ukraine to push back against Russian Imperialism.”

He added: “Sam you gave your life for people you never knew and acted with courage, morality and honour. Not only are you my little brother, but you’re an exceptional man, a good soldier and one of the bravest people I ever had the privilege of knowing.”

Daniel shared a photo of his brother in Ukrainian military uniform.

Samuel initially travelled to Ukraine as a member of a foreign volunteer fighting unit known as the Dark Angels, formed by the ex-Parachute Regiment member Daniel Burke.

Samuel was previously charged, alongside his father, Paul, with terrorism offences for assisting Daniel in travelling to Syria to fight alongside the Kurdish YPG against Islamic State in 2019.

The YPG (people’s protection units) were supported by western countries in the battle against Islamic State in Syria. The controversial trial collapsed at the Old Bailey in July 2020 after the Crown Prosecution Service abandoned the case.

Newey is the latest Briton to be killed in Ukraine, with others including Simon Lingard, 38, from Blackburn, and Jordan Gatley, who died fighting Russian forces in the Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk in June.

Scott Sibley, 36, died in late April in Mykolaiv after a drone dropped mortars on his regiment and Craig Mackintosh, from Norfolk, was killed while volunteering as a medic in Ukraine in August.

Paul Urey, a British aid worker, died last July while being detained by Russian-backed separatists.