In memory of Diesel, the police dog killed by a suicide bomber on Wednesday, Russian government officials this week donated and sent Diesel's replacement to help 'in the fight against terrorism'. The new puppy, called Dobrynia, will be trained to continue the vital work that Diesel, a 7-year -old Belgian Shepherd, was doing before she was killed in the raid on the apartment block in Saint-Denis, where Paris massacre mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud was hiding. Five French police officers were lightly wounded during the same raid, but it was Diesel who paid the ultimate price.
"When the policemen arrived with the dog, the dog came in first and was immediately killed. The French people are sad about her death," the Daily Mail reported.
Diesel used to work with the French anti-terror unit that is known as RAID. Last Wednesday, she was sent ahead of her human colleagues to check into a building in Saint-Denis where Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the mastermind of Paris massacre, was hiding, and upon the RAID arrival, she blew himself up and Diesel was killed in the blast.
Diesel's death at the hands of the terrorist sparked an outpouring of sympathy from around the world, particularly dog lovers.
One police handler reportedly said it was "like losing one of our colleagues," while a Twitter user said Diesel had "died to defend our colours."
The day following Diesel's death, the hashtag #JeSuisChien (French for "I am dog") was trending in Paris following Wednesday morning's police raid on suspected ISIS militants in the Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis, according to a Yahoo Finance Business Insider article.
Some pictures of Dobrynia have been shared on social network sites by the Russian Interior Ministry, according to online sources at Pet Fans, and in a letter, Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev stated: "I ask you to accept from Russian's police dog handlers this shepherd puppy, who will be able to take his place in the ranks of Diesel, your dog who died doing her duty."
For extra luck, the tiny German shepherd pup was given the name of Dobrynia, one of most legendary Russian heroes. He was a man who personified courage, strength, love and self-sacrifice. Dobrynya Nikitich was Putin's uncle and tutor, later transformed into invincible bogatyr (knight) in the Russian Folklore.
