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A Ukrainian soldier who insists on always carrying a first-aid kit – even while on holiday – has been praised for saving the life of a stabbing victim during a trip in Venice, Italy.
Yanis Tereshchenko, a 32-year-old teacher who enlisted in the Ukrainian army’s third assault brigade immediately after Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, was on his way to his hotel with his wife and his five-year-old son in the Rialto district when he witnessed an altercation between two young men.
Suddenly, one of them drew out a large knife and stabbed the other in the arm and leg.
“Fortunately, I had my emergency kit with me – the one I’ve carried since the war began – even though my wife always tells me to leave it at home,” Tereshchenko told Corriere del Veneto. “I saw a deep wound on his thigh and pulled out a tourniquet to stem the bleeding. He lost consciousness and was haemorrhaging. I tried to bring him back to life.”
Doctors later said that Tereshchenko’s intervention was providential. The victim was losing blood rapidly, and without the soldier’s prompt action, he might have died. Tereshchenko did his best to keep him conscious until the ambulance arrived.
“I don’t know if he would have survived,” he said. “People were confused, and no one knew what to do. Sadly, I have seen so much during the war that I had no doubt about the need to intervene.”
In a post on X, Tereshchenko wrote: “20 minutes in Venice. The boy was lucky that I was near the first aid kit and tourniquets; by the time the ambulance arrived, he would have f**king bled to death.”
Venice’s mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, met Tereshchenko and his family personally to thank him and present him with a plaque.
“Yanis’s gesture is an example to us all,” the mayor said. “He has my personal thanks and that of the entire city of Venice for this extraordinary act of humanity, courage, and selflessness. To Yanis, to the Ukrainian people, and to our friends in Odessa, we renew our solidarity in pursuit of a lasting peace that will secure their defence.”
The identities of the victim and the assailant, as well as the motivation behind the attack, remain unclear.
“The war has taught us to take care of people,” Tereshchenko said. “We will undoubtedly return to Italy, but now it is time to go back to my country to defend my land.”
