Son of CIA Deputy Director Dies in Ukraine While Fighting for Russia – IStories | World | london-news-net.preview-domain.com

Son of CIA Deputy Director Dies in Ukraine While Fighting for Russia – IStories

April 27, 2025

The son of Julianne Gallina, the Deputy Director of the CIA, was killed while fighting alongside Russian troops in Ukraine last year, as reported by the investigative news organization IStories on Friday, referencing a leaked database from a military recruitment center in Moscow.

Michael Alexander Gloss, 21, lost his life on April 4, 2024, according to an obituary published by a funeral home in Fairfax, Virginia. IStories detailed that Russian officials notified his family of his death in October, and he was laid to rest in his hometown in December.

The obituary does not mention his military activities but states that he was “tragically killed in Eastern Europe.”

Gallina took on the role of CIA Deputy Director for Digital Innovation in February 2024. Gloss’s father, Larry Gloss, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, became the president of a software company focused on security in May 2024.

As per IStories, Gloss had previously been an environmental activist who left school to travel, eventually joining the counter-culture group Rainbow Family in Turkey and Italy, where he supported pro-Palestinian efforts. He arrived in Russia in August 2023 after securing a visa in Turkey and subsequently enlisted at a military recruitment center in Moscow the following month.

Gloss received brief training with a group of Nepalese mercenaries before being assigned to a paratrooper base in Ryazan. He was reportedly placed in an assault unit that was sent to eastern Ukraine in December 2023 and was last seen online in mid-March, just weeks before he was killed during offensive operations near Soledar in the Donetsk region.

Gloss was among over 1,500 foreign nationals from 48 different countries documented in the leaked recruitment database since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Friends told IStories that he had aspirations of obtaining Russian citizenship and securing investors for environmental initiatives, though some believed he never intended to fight, while others felt he may have fallen prey to conspiracy theories.

“He envisioned a world that was fairer, more peaceful, and in harmony with nature,” his obituary stated.

‘Plush Troops’: The Pro-War Children’s Toys Taking Over Russia’s Online Marketplaces Текст: “In this strategy game, you lead a battalion aiming to liberate Ukraine from Nazi rule,” reads the description of Russia’s first board game about the war in Ukraine. The game,called“Special Operation on the Outskirts,” sells for about 1,600 rubles ($20) on Russian online marketplaces. Inspired by Monopoly and designed for two to six players, the game challenges participants to occupy as many Ukrainian cities as possible. Instead of Monopoly money, players use a fictional currency featuring the faces of President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and former General Sergei Surovikin. In the fourth year of the full-scale invasion, toys and merchandise featuring the pro-war Z symbol have become increasingly common on Russian marketplaces and social media. Listings include everything from car dashboard decorations to toy soldiers for children. “The plot grabs you from the first minutes. It’s great that part of the proceeds go to support participants of the special military operation. The perfect gift for patriots!”writesYekaterina, a recent buyer. Other reviewers share that they gave the game to their sons on Defenders of the Fatherland Day. Another board game, “Couch Expert,” promises to educate players about the invasion. Players have 30 seconds to answer questions about the progress of the “special operation.” Questions range from the late ultranationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky’s position on the war to the roles of figures like Elon Musk and propagandist Olga Skabeyeva in shaping сoverage of the invasion. “I ordered 11 of them for school as gifts for the boys. But I got lucky — the boxes came wrapped in film, so it’s not embarrassing to give them. Thanks,”writesa woman named Natalia in a review. These toys span all price ranges, from an acrylic Z-minionto aroly-polytoy bearing the pro-war slogan “You can’t knock us down.” The latter sells for about 500 rubles ($6). “The idea to create a patriotic roly-poly toy came five years ago, when the Russian team was banned from competing under the national flag at the Olympics in Korea,”saysDmitry Zavidov, director of the Kotovsky Roly-Polies company. On VKontakte, Yulia from Moscowsells“knitted fighters” shaped like a tiger, mouse or dog. Each animal, stitched with a Z or V,costs1,500 rubles ($18). For an extra 250 rubles, Yulia offers to embroider a soldier’s callsign on the toy’s flak vest. “Any other inscription of your choice is also possible (price depends on the size),”readsthe product description. On some marketplaces, similar toys arepricedat around 1,100 rubles ($14). Another item on the market is a stuffedraccoonmarked with the Z symbol, a reference to the raccoon that Russian troops infamously stole from a zoo during their retreat from the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson. Sellers alsoofferstuffed bears in military uniforms with Z and V insignia. In some cases, the toys arehandmadeby widows of Russian soldiers. For younger children, “patriotic”coloring bookssell for about 300 rubles ($3.73). “My child is four. He liked it,” says one mother in a review. Some parents post videos of their children coloring tanks and other Russian military equipment. For about the same price, sellers alsooffera set of toy soldiers called the “Special Operation Recon Soldiers Set.” “Toy figures of the Russian Armed Forces will delight children with their quality and design. They’re perfect for role-playing games and help develop creativity and imagination,” the manufacturer claims. War-related games and toys may hold particular appeal for children,explainspsychologist Michael Brandl, a member of the German toy evaluation group Spiel Gut. One reason for their appeal, he says, is that they offer positive reinforcement of the media and propaganda messaging that children encounter daily. “From these sources, children form an image of a person they then try to imitate and act out in roleplay. Weapons and how to use them become part of the child’s perceived reality and a key attribute of the supposed image of the ‘ideal’ man,” Brandlwrote. A child psychologist from Russia, whose name has been withheld for safety reasons, voiced a similar view. “This is a protracted war, so the state and Vladimir Putin need boys, even from kindergarten, to already be preparing for the future battlefield,” the psychologist told The Moscow Times. “First, the state turns poor women into mothers who buy these toy soldiers. Then this Z-patriotism is nurtured with a mother’s milk. They’ll buy it without even noticing the Z, especially if it’s on sale.” Marketplaces also offer stuffed cat car decorations in camouflage colors that cost about 500 rubles ($6.20). In addition to a toy with the Russian tricolor and the letter Z, the manufacturer alsooffersa version bearing the Wagner mercenary group’s skull emblem. “You sent me a female cat, apparently — no male features and no Z. I specifically needed a male cat with a Z on it! I refused the order at pickup,”complainsa buyer named Elena. Other buyers note that the toy’s tail fell off quickly. Even toy robots are marked with the Z symbol. A set of these toys costing 784 rubles ($9.70) includes a robot with a Russian flag and weapons. For an extra 200 rubles, itcomeswith a glow-in-the-dark Z. “Satisfied with the purchase. Russia will win! Russia always wins!”saysMaria, who bought the Z-robot for her son, in her review.

rimmaruslan98@gmail.com June 13, 2025

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