A native of South Ossetia, Roland Tskhovrebov (Sancho), perished during the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. He went there as part of a special unit from North Ossetia.
For two months Roland was bravely fighting against the Nazis. He had three days left before his vacation, and he was waiting impatiently, hurried to his family. But the fate decreed otherwise. He did not have time to see his beloved wife and three little sons. A fragment from a mine took him from his family.
In the memory of his wife and friends, Roland remained a kind, bright, courageous and always ready to help person. Life without Roland has lost all meaning, they say. He is a man who is being mourned by half of Ossetia.
“I have never met such an amazing person in my life. Only good things can be said about him. He was a man with a huge heart, honest and just. Could not pass by people in need of help. He could give his last money to the poor. There was a case in Moscow: in the shopping center, an unconscious homeless man was lying next to the escalator, and people were literally stepping over his head. When Roland saw this, he ran up to him, got angry, yelled at people, saying why they did not help him, and began to wrinkle his ears. Brought him to his senses. I asked him to leave, but he looked at me reproachfully and said: how can I leave him, because he is also a person,” said Roland’s wife Nona Bagaeva.
12 years we were living in harmony concord
Memories of the wife are hard. She cannot talk about Roland without tears.
“I don’t remember him ever hurting me in any way. He was a support for the family, as they say behind the "stone wall". He never left my side when I was sick. Once he was sleeping for a whole week in the hallway of the hospital when I had a heart operation. Despite the requests of the doctors to leave and rest, he did not leave me. And now life has lost its meaning without him. Only children make me live,” said the wife, crying...
Nona said that Roland had had many friends and was always ready to help them. According to her, he was always relied upon, and it was deserved. He never left his friends without support.
“His phone was being torn from constant calls. He had many friends. They were calling him, asking for help, they hoped for him, they loved him. Now his friends call me and ask how to go on without him, not holding back tears. They say they don't want to go to Vladikavkaz anymore because Sancho is no longer there. The people with whom he became friends in the Donbas are also calling me, they are also deeply mourning for him,” Nona said
He said that he would not leave his comrades alone
Roland left for the Donbass on March 27 and after a short time became very ill. Despite the requests of the commander to go back home or go to the hospital, he did not obey. According to his wife, he was very afraid that he would be sent home, he asked the commander not to do this. For him, to go home, even on the background of illness, was a betrayal of his comrades, and he would never go for it.
“Roland had asthma, because of this he constantly carried salbutamol with him. And there he, apparently, caught a cold and fell ill. He had a high fever. He called me and complained that because of this the commander insisted that he return home or go to the hospital and be treated, but he did not agree. He then almost cried, begged the commander not to send him home, said that he would wash the dishes, he would do everything to avoid being sent. I begged him to return, but he strictly said that he would not leave his comrades alone,” recalls Nona.
Roland was three days away from vacation.
He was in a hurry to visit his family, he wanted to go to the sea with them. Nona is recalling that Roland, as if foreseeing his death in the last days, constantly repeated that may be, this was his last vacation, and he wanted to spend it with his family.
"He has been calling me continuously for the last three days. I was even outraged somehow that I didn't have time to do household chores because of this. He then said: and if I see your face for the last time, then let it remain in my memory. From May 26 to May 28, he was supposed to be on the front line, and then he was supposed to have a vacation. He then transferred the money to my card, asked me to buy everything necessary for a trip to the sea, and as soon as he returns, they will go on vacation. I went shopping the same day, happy. He himself, like a child, was happy about the upcoming trip and the opportunity to be with his family," said Nona.
Before going to the front line, Roland called his wife, said that they were in a tense situation, they were being shelled with "Grad "and that he would be on the front-line tomorrow morning. This was their last conversation. On the second day, Roland was killed.
Tskhovrebov's wife was informed about Tskhovrebov's death through her brother. This will be the scariest day for her.
“On the evening of the day when Roland went to the front line, his friend wrote to me and asked for my brother's phone number. I gave them his phone number and asked if there was anything about Roland? He said no.
After some time, another friend of his wrote to me and again asked for my brother's number. And then I realized that something had happened. To my requests to tell me everything, they were silent. At night, at 12 o'clock, my brother came to me, and his glance was enough for me to understand everything. I then went a little crazy. This is the scariest day of my life,” said Nona.
He was a very brave and fearless man,” she continued. They said about him that at the front line he had been rushing forward, and at the request of his friends to let those who did not have a family go forward, he insisted that, on the contrary, they should be given a chance to survive so that they would start families.
“He never had money. Money never mattered to him. He said that money is evil and filth, but there was great humanity in him. Roland was fearless and so are his children. He loved to fight and our boys love to fight too. They are just as fearless, bearers of justice and overly kind. For them, the loss of their father is a huge loss. At the funeral, the youngest said: I know that dad is dead, and you mourn his death, but this is not my father. He didn’t look like himself so much,” Nona said.
Roland in the memories of friends
For Roland's friend Iron Tedeev, the memories of him are also hard.
“I never imagined that he would die. I could imagine the death of anyone, but not him, he was so brave, lively and fearless. Honestly, I have no idea how to live without Sancho,” said Iron.
They grew up together. We've been friends for over 25 years. For him, - says Iron, - Sancho was not just a friend, he was a brother.
“He was more than a friend. He was a support not only to me, but, probably, to everyone who knew him. He always tried to help in everything. He was very kind. His death is a great loss for a huge number of people. Everyone loved him,” a friend recalls without holding back tears ...
According to Tedeev, Roland from childhood was distinguished by responsiveness and good nature. He was a responsible and reliable person, ready to enter into any conflict for friends.
Roland is an active participant in Georgia's military actions against South Ossetia in 2004 and 2008. Tedeev says that in 2004, Sancho decided to fight in the ranks of the local detachment, but he was not allowed because of his age. He was only sixteen, and he was not even entrusted with a weapon. But he insisted on his own and, despite the prohibitions, went with them. Subsequently, he established himself as a brave warrior.
“He never abandoned his homeland and friends in difficult times. He never thought about dying. He was not afraid of death, he always threw himself into the fire first,” noted his friend.
The friends tried to stop his intentions to go to Donetsk, but Tskhovrebov said that he could not be here when help was needed there.
“Perhaps there are people who went to the Donbass for the sake of earning money, but not Sancho. He never liked money and always said that money spoils people. The guys with whom he was fighting, today are speaking of his courage and fearlessness. They say that he did not know fear and inspired hope in other soldiers. He had many friends. He was an incredible person. People were drawn to him, they wanted to be friends with him,” says Iron.
Roland could not bear the thought of leaving the war zone. The requests of friends to return, he perceived with hostility. He said that he would return only in case of death or when the special operation was over.
“He did not understand how a man can leave the war zone and leave friends. He seemed to have a premonition of his own death. Recently, he often said that if he died, he was sure that Nona would raise their sons as real men, and that he was also sure of the support of his family from his friends. If I had known that he was going to die, I would have lay down in front of the bus, but I would not let him go. I will never leave his family; I will support them until the end of my days. Exactly the same as all his friends,” Tedeev said with tears.
Another close friend of Roland, Bibo Sanakoev, says that Roland was different from everyone else. He, according to him, was a special person, always positive.
"He was excessively kind, pitied everyone and tried to help poor people. He was a support, a support for everyone he knew. I've known him since I was 17, you could say he raised me. He probably knew half of Vladikavkaz, and he was not just loved, he was adored," says Sanakoev.
According to him, he made many acquaintances in the war zone, who also fell in love with him.
“He always encouraged his comrades, in any situation, he was positive. Many of them are now on vacation and, according to them, have no idea how to return to the war zone without him,” Sanakoev said.
The best die, - continued Sanakoev, emphasizing that Roland will forever remain in the hearts of his friends, in the brightest memories.
Roland Tskhovrebov went to the Donbass on March 28 and perished on May 27. He was 34 years old. Two weeks after his death, he was supposed to be 35 years old. He did not live to see his birthday. Roland left three minor children, the youngest of them is five years old.
Roland Tskhovrebov is buried in the village of Dzau, South Ossetia.
