“We are in contact with the family and have provided all possible consular assistance. Out of respect for the family in this difficult time, we have nothing more,” the spokesman said.
According to his obituary, published on June 1 in The Recorder in New York State, Zabielski “died on Sunday, May 15, 2022, while fighting in the war in the village of Dorozhnyank, Ukraine.”
He is 52 years old and survived by his wife and five adopted children, residents said.
Zabielski is the second American known to have been killed in fighting in Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in late February. Marine veteran Willie Cancel was killed in April in battles with Ukrainian forces. He worked with a private military company. Recently, two American volunteers fighting for Ukraine, who have been missing since June 9, were captured last week and detained by Russian-backed separatists in Donetsk, according to Russian state media.
U.S. citizens Alexander John-Robert Drucke, 39, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Andy Thai Ngoc Huyn, 27, of Hartsel, Alabama, fought alongside Ukrainian forces north of Kharkov.
CNN reported that the third American identified by the State Department as missing in Ukraine was US Marine Veteran Grady Kurpasi.
The last time his wife and close friends heard from Kurpasi was in April. He chose to volunteer with Ukrainians in Ukraine, but initially did not imagine fighting on the front lines, a family friend told CNN.
American citizens are among the few foreigners who have left their homes to join the battle in Ukraine.
The United States has called on Americans not to travel to Ukraine at this time due to the active armed conflict and the “separation of American citizens in Ukraine” from the Russian government.
This story has been updated with additional basic information.
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