A SOUTHEND man who is planning his next trip to Ukraine says he is not afraid to travel into the warzone and help people who are under attack.

Tony Anthony is working with 300 other volunteers, as part of his role as CEO of Christian charity the Great Commission Society.

They are working alongside local charities to supply food to residents struggling to survive the Russian invasion. And having already established themselves in the area with their work in previous years, they are also helping refugees as they escape to neighbouring states, such as Romania where Mr Anthony is placed.

Despite narrowly escaping a Russian missile attack on Friday, he said he is more concerned about other people’s welfare when he returns next week.

He said: “I’m very scared for these mothers and little children that at the minute have no food. They’re trapped there and can’t get out to flee because they’re worried about getting hurt on the way.

“It’s not a brave thing to go there, what’s brave is these people leaving everything just with a bag. That’s our focus and at the minute. I’ve got a team over there.

“Right now, we’re trying to acquire some additional vehicles and supplies. We need to take another shipment to Kyiv but also to Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Mariupol.

“None of our partners want to die. We’re being terribly careful to identify these safe humanitarian corridors and we’ve got people stationed all over the country in continual contact with each other about movements.”

After his experience last week Mr Anthony is planning to order a bulletproof vest before he returns to his work in Eastern Europe.

He added: “Last week there were refugees waiting for eight hours in queues in the snow, including mothers carrying babies.

“I was really upset when I got back to the UK yesterday because I heard people on the news talking about how Ukrainian people are being treated as human shields by the military and Russia aren’t targeting residential areas. That’s rubbish.”