Today marks two years since the death of 46-year-old Ilgar Egamberdiev, a Crimean Tatar soldier with the call sign “Dukat,” who gave his life for Ukraine on June 8, 2023, during the fighting for the village of Robotino in the Zaporizhzhya region.
Ilgar was born on May 2, 1977 in Bekabad, Uzbekistan, and since 1991 he lived in the village of Krymka, Dzhankoy district in Crimea. After moving to Ukraine, he was engaged in business, headed the sports club “Asker”. He participated in the Revolution of Dignity in 2013-2014 as a member of the active group of the party “UDAR”.
Before the full-scale war Ilgar Egamberdiev lived in Bucha, worked as a private entrepreneur. During the invasion of Russian troops in the Kyiv region, together with his family he found himself in temporary occupation, but later joined the Defense Forces – the 47th separate mechanized brigade of the AFU.
His bravery and selflessness were recognized with state and institutional awards. Ilgar was awarded the Iron Cross “For Bravery”, honorary badge “Best Sergeant of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” (order of Commander-in-Chief Valeriy Zaluzhny), as well as a badge of distinction “For the Defense of Kyiv and Kyiv region”. Major General Kirill Budanov personally signed a commendation on behalf of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine – “for assistance in solving the tasks of intelligence activities and services to the MDU GDI”.
The hero is buried in the village of Chaiki, Buchanskiy district, Kyiv region.
The team of the Crimean Tatar Resource Center expresses sincere condolences to the relatives of Ilgar Egamberdiev and keeps the memory of Crimean Tatar militaries who stood up under arms for the sake of freedom.