Abdulkhakim Isakovich Ismailov (russian: Абдулхаким Исакович Исмаилов, kum, Абдулгьаким Исакъны уланы Исмайиланы; 1 July 1916 – 17 February 2010) was a soldier in

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

during World War II. He was photographed by

Yevgeny Khaldei Yevgeny Ananyevich Khaldei ( rus, Евгений Анатольевич Халдей, ukr, Євген Анатольєвич Халдей) ( – 6 October 1997) was a Soviet Red Army naval officer and photographer. He is best known f ...

raising the

flag of the Soviet Union The State Flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (), commonly known as the Soviet flag (), was the official state flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) from 1922 to 1991. The flag's design and symbolism are derived from ...

over the Reichstag in Berlin on 2 May 1945, days before

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

's surrender. Abdulkhakim Ismailov, a native of

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...

of the Kumyk ethnicity, was severely wounded five times during World War II, including the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...

, but constantly returned to the frontline. According to his own words, he was born in Aksay village, not in Chagar otar, as stated officially. The iconic photograph of Raising a flag over the Reichstag has been compared to the picture of American Marines raising the Flag on Iwo Jima in the

Pacific theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. Photographer Yevgeny Khaldei recruited three Soviet soldiers for the picture – Aleksei Kovalyev, a teenager, held the flag over the Reichstag, while Ismailov and Aleksei Goryachev also appeared hoisting the flag in the photograph. Ismailov's role in the photograph remained unknown until Kovalyev identified Ismailov in a 1995 television documentary. Ismailov was honored as a

Hero of Russia Hero of the Russian Federation (russian: Герой Российской Федерации, Geroy Rossiyskoy Federatsii), also unofficially Hero of Russia (russian: link=no, Герой России, Geroy Rossii), is the highest honorary title ...

in 1996. Abdulkhakim Ismailov died in his native village of Chagar-Otar,

Khasavyurtovsky District Khasavyurtovsky District (russian: Хасавю́ртовский райо́н; av, Хасавхъала мухъ; kum, Хасавюрт якъ, ''Xasavürt yaq''; ce, Хаси-Эвлан кӀошт, ''Xasi-Evlan khioşt'') is an administrativ ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, on 17 February 2010, at the age of 93.

Awards and decorations

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ismailov, Abdulkhakim 1916 births 2010 deaths People from Khasavyurtovsky District People from Dagestan Oblast Kumyks Soviet military personnel of World War II Battle of Berlin Heroes of the Russian Federation People notable for being the subject of a specific photograph Recipients of the Medal "For Courage" (Russia) Recipients of the Order of Glory Recipients of the Medal of Zhukov