Families say 2 U.S. citizens who went to fight in eastern Ukraine are missing

Two U.S. citizens who went to Ukraine to fight against Russian troops are missing, and their families are worried that they have been captured.
Both men — 39-year-old Alexander Drueke of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and 27-year-old Andy Huynh of Hartselle, Alabama — were last in contact with relatives on June 8. "What we know officially at this point from the State Department is that Andy and Alex are missing," Huynh's fiancee, Joy Black, told Reuters on Wednesday. "We do not have confirmation for anything beyond that. Obviously the longer the search goes, the more we start to consider other scenarios."
Drueke and Huynh were both fighting in the Kharkiv area, and told their families on June 8 they would be offline for a few days. The men, concerned that their communications might get intercepted, did not share why. Drueke and Huynh met in Ukraine, and their families said they both traveled there to fight after seeing photos of Ukrainian civilians killed by Russian forces. "When Andy saw this footage coming out of Ukraine, he said he couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, was just consumed by the horror that these innocent civilians were going through," Black said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
If Drueke and Huynh, who both served in the U.S. military, have been captured, they would be the first known U.S. citizens taken as prisoners of war since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, Reuters reports.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Why some people remember dreams and others don't
Under The Radar Age, attitude and weather all play a part in dream recall
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Hotel seal
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
New FBI Director Kash Patel could profit heavily from foreign interests
The Explainer Patel holds more than $1 million in Chinese fashion company Shein
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Is the British Army ready to deploy to Ukraine?
Today's Big Question The UK 'would be expected to play a major role' if a peacekeeping force is sent to enforce ceasefire with Russia
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
What will Trump-Putin Ukraine peace deal look like?
Today's Big Question US president 'blindsides' European and UK leaders, indicating Ukraine must concede seized territory and forget about Nato membership
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's disappearing army
Under the Radar Every day unwilling conscripts and disillusioned veterans are fleeing the front
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Cuba's mercenaries fighting against Ukraine
The Explainer Young men lured by high salaries and Russian citizenship to enlist for a year are now trapped on front lines of war indefinitely
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine-Russia: are both sides readying for nuclear war?
Today's Big Question Putin changes doctrine to lower threshold for atomic weapons after Ukraine strikes with Western missiles
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Incendiary device plot: Russia's 'rehearsals' for attacks on transatlantic flights
The Explainer Security officials warn of widespread Moscow-backed 'sabotage campaign' in retaliation for continued Western support for Ukraine
By The Week UK Published
-
The North Korean troops readying for deployment in Ukraine
The Explainer Third country wading into conflict would be 'the first step to a world war' Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned
By The Week UK Published
-
Experts call for a Nato bank to 'Trump-proof' military spending
Under The Radar A new lender could aid co-operation and save millions of pounds, say think tanks
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published