Ukrainian Surgeon Removes Live Grenade From Soldier's Chest

A surgeon in Ukraine is being hailed as a hero for saving a soldier's life after removing a grenade from his chest. The live grenade got lodged in the soldier's torso during a bloody battle in Bakhmut, Ukraine, and had to be surgically removed. The weapon in question is known as a VOG grenade, an explosive round designed to be fired from a grenade launcher, New York Post reported.

Despite the risk that ''grenade could detonate at any second'', surgeon Major General Andrii Verba successfully performed the surgery and removed the grenade. The daring operation was performed in the company of two other soldiers due to the threat of an explosion.

''Our military doctors conducted an operation to remove a VOG grenade, which did not break, from the body of a soldier. The operation lasted in the presence of two sappers who supervised the safety of the medical staff and the patient. One of the most experienced surgeons of the Armed Forces, Major General Andrew Willow, operated without electrocoagulation, as the grenade could detonate at any time,'' General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote in social media post.

An X-ray image was also released by Ukraine's military, showing the exact location of the grenade lodged in the soldier's chest. In another image, the surgeon was pictured holding the explosive in his hands after the operation.

The injured soldier was sent to rehabilitation and recovery, the armed forces added. However, the Ukrainian armed forces did not specify when the surgery took place or how the grenade entered the soldier's body.

Meanwhile, social media users were in awe of the doctor's bravery and thanked him for saving the soldier's life.

One user wrote,''May God protect this doctor and he may send more doctors like him.. God bless the people of Ukraine.'' Another commented, ''How amazing and such an act of courage by everyone there in such a predicament. Nerves of steel and a steady hand from all in that environment. Can't imagine what it must have felt like. Shows what can be done with little or no implements, just trust and faith in one another. Bravo!''

The incident comes at a time when Russian troops have stepped up their assault on Soledar--a small salt mining town five miles northeast of Bakhmut. According to an AFP report, the head of Russia's mercenary group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, claimed that his fighters had taken control of Ukraine's city of Soledar after intense fighting.