Ukrainian MP opens ‘safari’ on Russian official aiding civilians

A Ukrainian MP called for a “safari” on an official distributing aid to civilians in a Russia-controlled region in the country’s south
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The lawmaker called on citizens to hunt down the former Crimean official who went to Ukraine to help civilians

Ukrainian MP with the European Solidarity party Alexey Goncharenko has urged the country’s citizens to hunt down senior Russian official Natalia Poklonskaya. The lawmaker announced a “safari” on the deputy director of the Rossotrudnichestvo federal agency, who has been distributing humanitarian aid in Ukraine’s Kherson region, in a Telegram post on Tuesday.

“The Ukrainians who should take on the capture of Natalia Poklonskaya. If you see her somewhere, feel free to grab her. Nobody in Russia would miss her. Otherwise, Poklonskaya would not even have come here in the first place. Safari is declared open,” Goncharenko said.

The lawmaker also dismissed the aid distributed by Poklonskaya as a “half bag of discounted goods,” branding the official “a piece of carrion pretending to be a great philanthropist.” Poklonskaya arrived in the Kherson region along with a humanitarian mission, distributing aid among the civilians in an area seized by the Russian military during the offensive launched on February 24.

Goncharenko is notorious for his strong anti-Russian stance, with the politician repeatedly producing hateful remarks against Moscow long before the ongoing conflict kicked off. The politician has been actively involved in the 2014 Maidan events and the turmoil that ensued.

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He took an active part in suppressing pro-Russian protests in his native city of Odessa, namely in May 2 2014 events, that culminated in dozens of pro-Russian activists getting burned alive when cornered at the local trade unions house. The politician has been cleared of any allegations of being involved in the massacre by a Ukrainian court. No culprits behind the mass-murder have ever been established.

Ex-Ukrainian prosecutor-turned Russian official Poklonskaya rose to prominence back in 2014 as well, taking a solid pro-Russia stance amid the Maidan turmoil. She took an active part in the subsequent Crimea events, when the peninsula broke off from Ukraine and joined Russia via a referendum. While her defection scored her high treason charges in Ukraine, she also got an army of internet admirers, who produced assorted memes and comics involving the ex-prosecutor.