War in Ukraine | Two Quebec fighters broke

Two Quebec volunteer fighters who left to serve alongside the Ukrainians, including the commander of a unit which recruited dozens of Westerners since the start of the war, died in Ukraine in recent days. The two deaths were quickly seized upon by Russian propaganda.

Jean-François Ratelle, known by the nom de guerre Hrulf, was the founder of the Norman Brigade, an organization that was among the first to enlist foreign soldiers in Ukraine.

The 38-year-old Quebecer died following a military operation that went wrong in the Belgorod region, several different sources confirmed. Mr. Ratelle died after around ten hours from a head injury inflicted by a Russian shot, according to a lawyer who represents foreign fighters in Ukraine, but who asks that her name be withheld for security reasons. Other foreign fighters who participated in this operation are believed to be missing.

His death was mentioned on a pro-Russian Telegram account which, under the pretext of “tracking Nazis” in Ukraine, publishes photos of foreign fighters revealing their full names and certain details allowing them to be traced.

A former infantryman of the Royal 22^e Regiment dies

The other Quebec victim is Alain Derasp, a former infantryman of the Royal 22^e Regiment which notably participated in several UN and NATO missions in Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as missions within the Logistics Corps of the Canadian Armed Forces in Afghanistan.

The Russian embassy in South Africa, in an active campaign on social networks to discourage potential foreign fighters from lending a hand to Ukraine, published a post on Monday on X arguing that Mr. Derasp, 49, had was “eliminated” while acting as a “mercenary”.

A photo of the soldier taken a few years ago in the company of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper accompanies the Russian Embassy’s publication, which was seen as an intrusive gesture by someone close to Mr. Derasp. This person wonders how Russian authorities gained access to this image, which does not appear to be in the public domain.

Alain Derasp died of a heart attack on February 27, resulting from pneumonia contracted in Ukraine, according to a Canadian soldier who has knowledge of the facts. He had been on leave for several days and was not near the front at the time of his death. His former partner claims that he did not actively participate in combat, but acted as a first aid instructor.

The Royal 22^e Regiment will lower its flags at half-mast next weekend in honor of this former adjutant, father of four children. “People are proud of him, what he did honors him,” says his former partner, who does not want her name to be made public.

At least ten Canadian fighters, including three Quebecers, have lost their lives in Ukraine since the start of the war, according to a compilation made by Defend Ukraine Foundation. This Vancouver organization collects donations to deliver military equipment to volunteer fighters.

No Canadian law prohibits citizens from going to fight for a foreign country, provided that it is not on the list of terrorist entities.

Days after Russia’s attempted invasion of Ukraine began, President Volodymyr Zelensky issued an appeal inviting foreign soldiers from around the world to join his International Territorial Defense Legion.

However, this unit was never functional.

“The Honor of the Battlefield”

The first foreign fighters who entered Ukraine after Mr. Zelensky’s call joined different groups, including the Normandy Brigade led by Jean-François Ratelle.

Mr. Ratelle, however, admitted, during an interview with The Press, that he had difficulty convincing the Ukrainian authorities to let his formation participate in operations at the front. Access to weapons and protective equipment also quickly became a glaring problem, which pushed around sixty volunteer fighters to desert his unit. Many of them had no real experience under fire.

“He was caught in bureaucratic problems quite typical of what we see in the Ukrainian chain of command,” says volunteer fighter Wali, who briefly joined the Normandy Brigade in 2022, under the orders of Mr. Ratelle . A conflict between the two soldiers quickly broke out.

Before founding the Normandy Brigade, Jean-François Ratelle was first a reservist member of the Canadian Armed Forces, then joined the French Foreign Legion for a number of years.

He previously had a short career as a mixed martial arts fighter. His former coach, Dominic Morin, remembers a reckless young man “who was looking for a path” when he took him under his wing, around 2010. “He wasn’t very structured”, but when he began to train more seriously to fight, “it became a matter of honor,” says Mr. Morin.

“I saw him again about a year after he enlisted in the Foreign Legion. The prestige of the soldier, the honor of the battlefield, had become extremely important to him,” he says.

With Pierre-André Normandin, The Press