GRAPHIC: Russian Drone Hunts Ukrainian Vegetable Seller, Severely Wounds Him in Blast

A Russian FPV drone hunted down a 52-year-old Ukrainian vegetable seller Tuesday before finally striking the van he was sheltering behind and inflicting severe wounds.

The man, identified only as Yurii, suffered shrapnel wounds, a concussion and shock. Ukraine is accusing Russia of a war crime over the incident.

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In an interview from his hospital bed, Yurii explained that he used the van as his vegetable stand. He said he didn’t have a phone; the only thing in his hands was garlic that he said he was cleaning, which he said he held up to show the drone that he wasn’t from the military. But it wouldn’t stop chasing him around the van.

Yurii had gone to Kherson that morning to sell vegetables.

“I only just put up the ​umbrella and started unloading the boxes,” he said. “My wife was there, too. Then we heard it buzzing but could not even see it. It came from somewhere behind the market, ‌from those ⁠bushes over there, and flew in very low.”

“It is open steppe. There is nowhere to go. It is terrifying, of course. Really terrifying,” he added, also saying that his wife had managed to get away and was unhurt.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a blistering statement on X regarding the alleged war crime.

“Today, many were shocked by yet another video of the drone ‘safari’ Russians are carrying out against civilians in Kherson. A Russian drone deliberately hunted down a man selling vegetables and detonated right next to him. The Russians even admitted to the crime, showing zero regret and openly boasting about tormenting people. The man was wounded in the blast. Every single day, ordinary people in Kherson face these Russian ‘safaris,’” Zelensky wrote.

“The world must see this. It must see every piece of evidence that Russia has gone mad and that its soldiers take pleasure in killing and abusing civilians,” he said.

“We must remain resolute in defending life,” he added.