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Pasha Lee’s friends hail him a ‘real hero’ and ‘inspirational warrior of light’ after Hobbit star killed in Ukraine war
PASHA Lee’s friends have paid emotional tributes to the “real hero” actor who died fighting the Russian invaders.
The Ukrainian star of The Hobbit, who quit his job to defend his country, was also described as an "inspirational warrior of light" by a heartbroken pal.
The 33-year-old , who was also a TV presenter, had only enlisted last week but died under shelling from Vladimir Putin's forces in Irpin, just northwest of Kyiv.
Paying tribute, fellow actor Evgeny Shekera said described his friend as a “real hero” in a social media post.
“He was an example of dedication and always an inspiration to me. When he was around I smiled, when we met, he hugged me.
“Pash - I love you. You meant a lot to me and to all people.”
Singer Dmitry Shurov also paid tribute to Lee and said "there is nothing worse than war".
“And it is possible to understand this only by experiencing it on your own.
"When you lose everything that is valuable to you. When there is no more earth under your feet.
“There can be no sufficient punishment in this world for those who start wars. Rest in peace….a good and wonderful warrior of light, Pasha Lee. ”
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In the haunting final post three days ago he shared a picture of himself in a military uniform with a friend captioned with a positive message.
He wrote: "For the last 48 hours there is an opportunity to sit down and take a picture of how we are being bombed, and we are smiling because we will manage and everything will be UKRAINE WE ARE WORKING!"
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Pasha reportedly joined the Territorial Defence Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the first day of the Russian invasion and was stationed in Irpin.
His death was confirmed by Sergiy Tomilenko, President of Ukraine's National Union of Journalists.
Tomilenko said he wanted to "express sincere condolences to Pasha's family and loved ones".
Julia Ostrovsk, head of the UATV/DOM Platform, for whom Lee presented a show, described him as the "most joyful and sunny" of their TV presenters.
In another one of his final Instagram posts, published five days ago, he shared a picture of himself in his military uniform and called on Ukrainians to "join" him in the war.
A former co-star Anastasiya Kasilova, who appeared with him in the 2021 TV drama "Provincial" - one of his final projects - also paid tribute to the actor on Facebook.
"He is an actor, TV presenter, my colleague and a good acquaintance," she wrote.
"Never forgive!"
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Pasha provided Ukrainian dubbing for Hollywood films including The Hobbit and The Lion King.
He was most famously known as a host on the popular entertainment program "Day At Home" and dubbed films into Ukrainian, including The Lion King and The Hobbit.