A Ukrainian tank fires on the Russian troops near Bakhmut. Photo / Getty Images
A badly-wounded Kiwi sniper carried his injured twin brother – a former NZSAS member – through intense rocket and gunfire to safety during one of the bloodiest battles in the Russia-Ukraine War, according to a new book.
And once his sibling was in hospital receiving lifesaving care, the young New Zealander - who had also suffered a shrapnel wound to the leg - hitchhiked back to the front line to rejoin his squad mates, the book says.
The heroics of the soldier are described by the military historian and author Shannon Monaghan, who is the partner of one of his former colleagues in the Ukraine International Legion.
To Die with Such Men is based off interviews Monaghan had with members of her partner’s unit – a squad she said included the Kiwi sniper she called Ramsey and his twin, a former NZSAS trooper she called Will. Some names in the book were changed for privacy.
Monaghan said she also drew on bodycam footage the soldiers captured while fighting.
That includes accounts of the Battle of Bakhmut; which military researchers have described as a “meat grinder” and the “bloodiest of the 21st century”.
Monaghan wrote that when the unit – dubbed Black Team – arrived in Bakhmut in January 2023, the “small city was cold and apocalyptic, with the sound of guns and artillery booming almost constantly, a Stalingrad-like feel with oddly modern twists, like the little quadcopter drones [squad member] Ragnar spotted overhead dangling grenades under their bellies”.
Will and Ramsey were part of an eight-strong assault team charged with clearing four houses near where Russians were known to be based, Monaghan wrote.
The first three houses were cleared with no contact, but as they approached the fourth, “Russian RPGs [rocket-propelled grenades] started flying towards the fire support team.
“A massive explosion shook the assault team,” Monaghan wrote in To Die with Such Men.
“Afterwards Ramsey thought it must have been an RPG fired from an elevated position in the house, because it was so accurate. Ramsey saw his twin brother Will, who had been standing right in front of him, go down”.
Another member said over the radio, “I’m hit, I’m hit”, while a third “was down hard”.
A badly-injured Ramsey and another unit member named Greg – who later died in the firefight – moved into lifesaving mode, the book stated.
“Ramsey, nearly blind in one eye from debris and bleeding from shrapnel in his leg, leapt forward with Greg to pull the three wounded men out of the line of fire as the enemy started to shoot airburst munitions at them.
“Will had bad injuries to his chest and abdomen: one leg was ripped open. Ramsey put on tourniquets as best he could, then went back to link up with the Quick Reaction Force (QRF). When Ramsey returned, he briefly helped Greg, who was working alone to save Marti and Dan under heavy fire.”
The book says Ramsey then made the call to get his brother to urgent medical help. He took off his battle kit, put his seriously injured twin brother on his shoulder and ran back through enemy fire to a house where a QRF was waiting.
A vehicle arrived to collect casualties, but according to the book the driver indicated he wanted to wait for more than just the injured Kiwi before heading to a nearby hospital.
“As two men were speaking, the vehicle started moving,” Monaghan wrote.
“Ramsey had jumped into the driver’s seat ... ready to drive his brother to help on his own.
“The driver jumped back into his vehicle, threw Ramsey into the back with Will, and drove them straight to the hospital.”
Monaghan wrote that when the twins departed the battlefield, they didn’t expect to see Ramsey back at the front, but he returned later that same day “still mostly blind in one eye, limping and still bleeding”.
Monaghan wrote that when questioned by his squad mates on his unexpected return he said, “Will is OK. The doctor said he could be stabilised. I came back to see how my other brothers were doing.”
Three squad-mates died from wounds during the battle; two in action that day, and another in hospital days later according to the book. Will survived after lifesaving surgery.
Dozens of New Zealanders are known to have joined the Ukraine International Legion, with numerous other Kiwis volunteering for the humanitarian effort in Ukraine.
At least five New Zealanders have been killed on the front lines.
The Battle of Bakhmut spanned July 2022-May 2023.
Former US President Joe Biden previously said more than 100,000 Russian troops were injured or killed in the battle.
The Ukrainian death toll is yet to be confirmed; but officials have said at least 12,729 soldiers are confirmed dead, more than 16,000 are still listed as missing and several hundred are believed to be prisoners of war.
According to the book, twins Will and Ramsey joined the unit in late 2022, and Ramsey was involved in three late-night sniping missions that resulted in the deaths of eight Russian soldiers.
“With active night-sniping, they could deny Russians the use of cover for entrenching, and keep them awake, scared, and immobile,” Monaghan, who is a military historian, wrote.
Neil Reid is a Napier-based senior reporter who covers general news, features and sport. He joined the Herald in 2014 and has 33 years of newsroom experience.
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.