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-29a1a43aba23f9bb779a1ac8b98d2121.jpeg "Photo of Illia Kabachynskyi")
-e4626ae3bd215c97887233a50fad80e1.jpeg "Efremov Synthetic Rubber Plant burns in Russia’s Tula region after a drone strike, December 24, 2025. (Photo: open source)")
-4349025dca5f4838bec74d9849568d18.jpg "Crimean Authorities Limit Mobile Internet “Until War’s End”, Tell Residents to “Just Accept It”")
-72b63a4e0c8c475ad81fe3eed3f63729.jpeg "Photo of Cyril Barabaltchouk")
![He Came to Russia From Iran to Take Photos. Then He Was Sent to Fight in Ukraine]( "He Came to Russia From Iran to Take Photos. Then He Was Sent to Fight in Ukraine")
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![Photo of Mykyta Ilchenko]( "Photo of Mykyta Ilchenko")
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- War in Ukraine
Arash Darbandi, a 34-year-old photographer from Ahvaz in southern Iran, came to Russia in search of work and never imagined he would become part of a war. In an interview with UNITED24 Media, he describes how an ordinary attempt to earn a living spiraled into coercion, detention, and ultimately forced conscription into the Russian army.![Illustrative image. A predecessor of the Barvinok-K, a Ukrainian Kvitnyk-E05 laser-guided artillery shell. 2017. (Source: Wikimedia)]( "Illustrative image. A predecessor of the Barvinok-K, a Ukrainian Kvitnyk-E05 laser-guided artillery shell. 2017. (Source: Wikimedia)")
![Soldiers of the Polish army carry barbed wire as they construct a barrier on Poland's- Russian exclave Kaliningrad border on November 5, 2022 in Wisztyniec, Poland. (Source: Getty Images)]( "Poland Begins Anti-Drone Installation on Belarus Border to Counter Hybrid Threats")
![Veterans of the Russian special forces lay flowers at a monument to Russian military special forces servicemen as they mark their professional day in Saint Petersburg on October 24, 2025. (Source: Getty Images)]( "Russia Loses Over 400,000 Troops in Two Years, UK Says—Minority and Remote Regions Hit Hardest")
![Ukrainian anti-drone robot Predator, armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun. (Source: UGV Robotics)]( "Ukrainian anti-drone robot Predator, armed with a 7.62 mm machine gun. (Source: UGV Robotics)")
![People standing on Primorsky Boulevard look at the smoke rising from a Russian missile attack on Odesa Marine Station on the afternoon of April 19, 2024. Illustrative photo. (Source: Getty Images)]( "Russian Drone Strike Hits Lebanese-Flagged Cargo Ship at Odesa Port")
-f561b4d4e04ef389e7d930d2663da57a.png "He Came to Russia From Iran to Take Photos. Then He Was Sent to Fight in Ukraine")
-aa506f86aa95fbe26b86c8f2033238ac.jpg "Illustrative image. A predecessor of the Barvinok-K, a Ukrainian Kvitnyk-E05 laser-guided artillery shell. 2017. (Source: Wikimedia)")
-bb3fd2c7dd6e6dca16732b7784d4d3b4.jpg "Russian Drone Strike Hits Lebanese-Flagged Cargo Ship at Odesa Port")