Fully vaccinated New Zealanders arrive home and Ukraine War continues in the latest New Zealand Herald headlines. Video / NZ Herald
A Ukrainian soldier who shared TikTok videos from the warfield to show his daughter he was safe has confirmed he is still alive after several reports suggested he had been killed.
Alex Hook confirmed on Monday he was alive after fans suspected the worst following a lengthy period of silence on his usually very active social media account.
"I am alive, and will continue to fight for Ukraine," he told his 2.5 million followers.
He started sharing videos in December dancing to popular songs while dressed in his camouflage uniform and protective armour, with the goal to lift his daughter's spirits while he was away.
Each video, which usually featured one or two other soldiers, attracted mass amounts of comments and likes from people all over the world.
Alex Hook is thought to have been killed since he hasn't posted for several days.
His TikTok account soared in popularity last week, as the world watched in horror following Vladimir Putin's commencement of a "military operation" in Ukraine.
Five days ago, Hook shared what was, at the time, suspected to be his final clip.
He and four others held their guns like air guitars and danced to Nirvana's song Smells Like Teen Spirit.
The video was initially celebrated by viewers, with many commending the men for showing a lighter side to the catastrophic situation.
Most recently however, floods of comments expressed deep sadness after reading unconfirmed reports Hook had been killed.
Unverified reports claimed he died on Wednesday following an attack in the eastern Donbas region, where the Defence Ministry recorded 96 ceasefire violations by pro-Russian separatists.
Six soldiers were also wounded in the attack, which saw rockets, heavy artillery, antitank missiles, and mortars used.
Hook last year uploaded a TikTok showing himself singing along to Blackpink's song How You Like That with his young daughter.
A subsequent video showed the little girl dancing on her own to Yagoda Malinka by Russian artist Habib.
The videos attracted thousands of comments from people, upset over reports the dad may have been killed.
"Nooo, he has a daughter, right now I'm crying," one comment read.
"I'm literally bawling my eyes out," another said.
Hook typically uploaded a new dancing video almost every day.
