Andrew Bagshaw and Chris Parry: What we know so far about missing Britons

The assemblage of 1 of 2 Britons who went missing astatine the play has been found, according to a Russian mercenary radical warring successful Ukraine.

But it is not wide what has happened to Andrew Bagshaw, 48, and Chris Parry, 28, who were reported missing connected 7 January and the Foreign Office has not confirmed whether either of them has died.

What were they doing successful Ukraine?

Chris Parry had spoken to aggregate journalists saying helium was moving arsenic a unpaid evacuating civilians from the beforehand lines successful eastbound Ukraine.

A Ukrainian foundation - Pavel Vyshnyakov - told the BBC that Mr Parry had worked with them, but that Mr Bagshaw had not. A Telegram transmission associated with Yevgeny Prigozhin, brag of Russian mercenary radical Wagner, earlier released an representation of a papers which had the sanction of that foundation and Mr Parry's support to run arsenic a volunteer.

A unpaid who said helium worked arsenic Andrew Bagshaw's interpreter supplied america with a video posted connected 12 December 2022 showing Bagshaw and Parry wearing civilian apparel carrying a stretcher into a building. We've been incapable to verify the location.

Mr Parry and Mr Bagshaw were believed to person headed to the heavy bombarded front-line municipality of Soledar connected Friday 6 January. In an Instagram post, a person of theirs - besides moving arsenic a unpaid - said that the brace had made the travel to transportation retired evacuations.

"If you person immoderate accusation connected the whereabouts of the boys, oregon person seen their car (Black Land Rover, AFIO HWU), delight interaction maine oregon the police," the person added.

There are tons of groups successful the area, which see foreigners, who assistance with evacuations of civilians and bring nutrient and supplies to people.

BBC analogous Yogita Limaye and shaper Imogen Anderson met Mr Parry connected caller year's time successful the metropolis of Kramatorsk, successful the eastbound Donbas region. They had been looking to study connected Bakhmut, the country of aggravated fighting, and the volunteers moving there.

He told them helium had been staying successful the metropolis for astir six weeks, and had conscionable acquired a caller 4x4 done a fundraiser helium had started 2 months before.

He told the BBC journalists that helium had to wantonness his aged car successful Bakhmut the erstwhile week. It had been "shot by a tank" helium posted connected Instagram astatine the time.

He told the brace that helium had nary volition of leaving Ukraine, wherever helium had been since March.

The journalists were connected their mode to Bakhmut connected 2 January erstwhile Parry got successful interaction to accidental helium was besides going into the city. But erstwhile they reached Bakhmut they mislaid reception and that was the past interaction they had with the volunteer.

The pursuing day, Mr Parry gave an interrogation to BBC Radio Cornwall and described a adjacent brushwood he'd had with a drone successful the Bakhmut area.

Mr Parry said that helium was staying successful a municipality 10 miles from the beforehand enactment and explained his information was to assistance children particularly.

"To beryllium capable to get them retired of these war-torn areas, it makes it decidedly much worthwhile than thing other that I tin imagine."

In a erstwhile interrogation with the aforesaid presumption successful November 2022, helium said helium had go "obsessed" with Ukraine aft the invasion, realised helium could not combat and decided it would beryllium much utile for him to get a van and assistance evacuate civilians.

Mr Parry told the writer helium had been volunteering arsenic an evacuation driver.

"I person requests from household members who inquire america to spell and cod their relatives."

Describing an evacuation, helium said determination had been "lots of Ukrainian missiles... a batch of tiny arms firing".

He said: "A batch of volunteers won't spell anymore, but determination are radical determination who privation to get out, truthful I'm consenting to go."

Mr Parry said helium utilized a conveyance for evacuations - his achromatic Land Rover is seen successful the video.

Mr De Decker spoke to BBC Radio Cornwall connected Thursday astir the interrogation connected 3 January. He said erstwhile helium met Mr Parry, helium had conscionable returned from an evacuation successful the eastbound of Bakhmut. "It's a precise unsafe part. Volunteers, astir of them, they don't situation to spell there, due to the fact that it's excessively dangerous.

"Chris went that greeting to rescue a nonmigratory who was stuck... successful her apartment. Chris was capable to spell to the eastbound portion with his ain car, transverse the river, and helium was capable to prevention her."

Mr De Decker said Mr Parry had "probably saved hundreds of radical from the frontline areas".

Regarding Andrew Bagshaw, the BBC has spoken to Grzegorz Rybak, who lives successful Edinburgh, but travelled to Ukraine successful November. He says helium carried retired evacuations alongside Mr Bagshaw, acting arsenic his interpreter. Mr Rybak said the 48 twelvemonth aged had travelled to Ukraine successful March, and archetypal worked distributing aid, earlier starting evacuations during the summer.

Journalist and filmmaker Laurel Chor told the BBC she archetypal met Mr Bagshaw successful October successful Kramatorsk. She says she joined him connected evacuations successful Bakhmut connected 3 occasions successful November.

"Andrew had been doing it for months and months and mostly connected his own. He lived successful Kramatorsk, had a conveyance that he'd scrounge up donations for and helium was truly doing each the evacuations that helium could. He was precise quiescent astir it."

She added: "Andrew was truthful experienced."

She said she believes determination were astir 12 volunteers moving independently connected frontline evacuations successful the region. "There's a tiny radical of mostly autarkic volunteers, mostly foreign, who person conscionable taken upon themselves to bash evacuations.

"They don't needfully enactment with an organisation. What they bash is truthful dangerous.

"They are often going into areas that are actively getting shelled and sometimes they spell further successful wherever it's really the grey portion of the contested territory, successful betwixt Ukrainian and Russian positions."

Additional reporting: Daniele Palumbo, Paul Myers successful London and Liubov Sholudko, successful Ukraine