Zelensky and WW II Veteran Share Emotional Moment at D-Day Ceremony

At the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a touching moment with 99-year-old World War II veteran Melvin Hurwitz.

Introduced by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Hurwitz, sitting in a wheelchair wearing a blue WW II veteran’s cap, praised Zelensky, calling him “the savior of the people” and even trying to kiss his hand.

Zelensky, moved by the veteran's words, swiftly stopped Hurwitz from doing it and embraced him instead, saying, “No, no, no, you saved Europe.”

Hurwitz continued, calling Zelensky a hero. Zelensky responded, “No, you are our hero.”

This touching moment, displayed on large screens for thousands of attendees, quickly went viral online.

Eighty years before, Hurwitz was a B-17 radio gunner in the US Army Air Forces, according to his bio published on the Best Defenses Foundation website. His B-17 bomber had the nickname “Disorganized Confusion” and flew four combat missions before the Nazis surrendered.

“However, his plane participated in the dropping of food supplies to the starving Dutch civilians and flew returning French prisoners of war from Austria,” the Foundation bio says. 

“Arriving back in the United States, the crew began B-29 training in preparation for the ongoing war in Japan. While awaiting orders to the Pacific, the war ended” with the Japanese surrender in September of 1945.

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