Emma Igual, a 32-year-old aid worker from Barcelona, ??died yesterday under the fire of a Russian projectile on the Bakhmut front and becomes the first Spaniard to die in the armed conflict that began between Russia and Ukraine more than a year and a half ago . The young aid worker was the director of Road to Relief, which specializes in caring for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged population in wars and border conflicts.
He was also traveling in the direction of the town of Ivanivske with three other members of the organization, of German, Swedish and Canadian nationalities. The latter, Anthony Tonko Ihnat, also died in the attack, while the other two members of the team were seriously injured yesterday, according to several sources.
“Humanitarian workers and the civilian population can never be a target of war”, denounced Pedro Sánchez, acting president of the Government on the Twitter network yesterday.
“We will never forgive Putin for the pain he is causing”, said yesterday the acting Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, who condemned the “brutal Russian attack” that hit the aid workers’ vehicle. “Humanitarian workers are not a target!” wrote for his part on his social media profile the European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, who recalled that international humanitarian law “must be respected at all times , everywhere and for everyone”.
Emma Igual was from Barcelona and had extensive experience in the field of cooperation since 2009, as she explained in her professional profile, and had collaborated with different organizations in projects to protect children and help refugees in Greece, Burma , Kenya and Morocco. Prior to this, she worked as a research associate at various universities and United Nations agencies for over five years, where she wrote, translated and edited several academic articles, many of which were published in academic journals and journals. specialized
In an Instagram post uploaded yesterday morning, the account of the humanitarian aid organization in Ukraine explained that “this morning (Saturday) around 10 a.m.” its vehicle was “attacked by Russians” and “after a direct impact (…) it overturned and caught fire”, with the four occupants.
The Road to Relief team went to assess the needs of the civilian population in the frontline villages to obtain clear information about the situation. “The efforts of the team have been crucial in numerous evacuations and aid deliveries during the 18 months that we have been in operation”, pointed out the oenagé.
Acting Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz, and the president of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, expressed their condolences for the death in Ukraine of Emma Igual, who they have agreed to define as a representative of “the best” of the our society
The death of Emma Igual is the fortnight of a Spanish aid worker since 1990, while fulfilling their humanitarian mission in different parts of the world.
Half of them lost their lives in Africa (three in Rwanda, one in Mozambique, another in Equatorial Guinea, one more in Morocco and another in Ethiopia); another four died in America (two in El Salvador, one in Colombia and one in Peru). In Europe (Bosnia and Chechnya), two Spanish aid workers died, in addition to Lorena Enebral, belonging to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), murdered in Afghanistan in 2017. Most of the Spanish aid workers killed were doctors, nurses or they worked for health aid organizations.
On the frontline, Ukraine suffered another massive drone strike against the region and capital yesterday that left at least four people injured and multiple damage. The Government of Kyiv assured that it will continue its counter-offensive in the east and south of the country in the autumn, when adverse weather conditions make it difficult for the troops to advance.
