Abdulkhakim Ismailov was a Soviet soldier within the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

's Red Army

Red Army

The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

 during World War II. He was photographed by Yevgeny Khaldei

Yevgeny Khaldei

Yevgeny Khaldei was a Red Army photographer, best known for his World War II photograph of a Soviet soldier Raising a flag over the Reichstag, in Berlin, capital of the vanquished Nazi Germany .-Life:...

 raising the flag of the Soviet Union

Flag of the Soviet Union

The flag of the Soviet Union consisted of a plain red flag, with a setting or cross-peen hammer crossed with a sickle and a red star in the upper canton...

 over the Reichstag in Berlin in May 1945, three days before Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

's surrender.

Abdulkhakim Ismailov, a native of Dagestan

Dagestan

The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...

, was severely wounded five times during World War II, including the Battle of Stalingrad

Battle of Stalingrad

The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Nazi Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in southwestern Russia. The battle took place between 23 August 1942 and 2 February 1943...

, but constantly got back to the frontline.

The iconic photograph of Raising a flag over the Reichstag

Raising a flag over the Reichstag

Raising a flag over the Reichstag is a historic World War II photograph taken during the Battle of Berlin on 2 May 1945, by Yevgeny Khaldei. It depicts several Soviet troops raising the flag of the Soviet Union atop the German Reichstag building. The photograph was instantly popular, being...

 has been compared to the picture of American soldiers raising the Flag on Iwo Jima

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima

Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima is a historic photograph taken on February 23, 1945, by Joe Rosenthal. It depicts five United States Marines and a U.S. Navy corpsman raising the flag of the United States atop Mount Suribachi during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.The photograph was extremely...

 in the Pacific theater. 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 in 1996.

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

Dagestan

The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...

, Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

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