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Tengrinews.kz - Maria Kurbatova, a veteran sniper of the Great Patriotic War and participant in the liberation of Ukraine, Poland, and Czechoslovakia, has passed away in Pavlodar at the age of 101, her family confirmed.
Tengrinews.kz has previously reported on Kurbatova’s remarkable wartime story. This year, just days before Victory Day, our reporters visited her at home, where she welcomed guests with the same kind and enduring smile she had carried throughout her life.
Kurbatova began her wartime service in an evacuation hospital, caring for the wounded. In 1943, at the age of 19, she volunteered for the front. After training at a sniper school near Moscow, she joined the 650th Rifle Regiment of the 138th Rifle Division, which had been awarded the Order of Suvorov.
As a senior sergeant, Kurbatova fought in campaigns to liberate Ukraine, Poland, and Czechoslovakia. She returned home with numerous military honors, including the Orders of the Patriotic War and Zhukov, as well as the medals “For Courage,” “For Military Merit,” and “For the Victory over Germany.”
After the war, she taught basic military training, became a certified accountant, married, and raised a family.
Her loved ones remember her as a warm and optimistic person who never complained and always wished for peace.
“I really, really want there to be no more war. I want children to play in parks and gardens. What can I wish young people? Strong health, success in life, and that they take care of themselves and their loved ones,” Kurbatova said in her final interview with Tengrinews.kz.
Until recently, Maria Kurbatova was the oldest living veteran in the Pavlodar region. Only seven WWII veterans now remain in the area.
103-year-old WWII veteran Valentina Volkodav passed away in Petropavlovsk
