The parents of a Scottish garage owner said that they returned home from holiday to learn their son had travelled to fight against Russian soldiers in Ukraine.
Adam Ennis, 35, from Biggar, South Lanarkshire, had been scheduled to pick his parents up from the airport but instead joined a platoon of 50 men from around the world to defend the streets of Kyiv.
His father, Brian Ennis, told BBC Scotland: “We have a daughter who lives in Thailand and we were there for three months. Adam was due to pick us up at the airport. But his friend picked us up instead. His friend wasn’t going to say anything until Adam spoke to us. So we weren’t aware until he phoned us that evening. He was already in Ukraine at a camp.”
Ennis crossed the border into Ukraine from Przemysl, a Polish city that has welcomed tens of thousands of refugees. The garage owner, who has no military background, told The Times: “This is the start of the Third World War, can’t just sit back and watch.”
He said he did not have the heart to tell his parents about his decision to fight in Ukraine and did not want to spoil the last day with his sister.
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Brian Ennis said he was proud of his son, who had a soft spot for Ukraine during his travels in eastern Europe.
He said: “As any parents, you never want to see a loved one in any danger, and it has caused us a lot of anxious nights.
“We are worried, but he has done it for the right reasons. He hasn’t done it for glory, he is not silly. He is a level-headed person and when he got there he said he had no regrets.”
Adam told his father that he had seen “horrible things” but the spirit of the Ukrainian people humbled him and pushed him to overcome his fear.
The Ukrainian government said that nearly 20,000 people from 52 countries had volunteered to fight as part of a foreign legion.
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In February, Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, said she “absolutely supported” Britons heading to Ukraine, comments that Boris Johnson and Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, later distanced themselves from.
