Russian General Accused of Ukraine Strikes Targeted in Assassination Attempt

Russian Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, whom Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) accuses of ordering a missile strike on Kyiv's Ohmatdyt children's hospital, was the target of an assassination attempt in Russia's Saratov region. The incident was reported by the Telegram channel "Dossier of a Spy." According to the report, an assailant ambushed the general near his private residence and fired a pistol twice, striking him in the head and abdomen. Varpakhovich is reportedly in critical condition, and the shooter has not yet been apprehended.

Varpakhovich commands the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division of the Russian Aerospace Forces' long-range aviation. The SBU alleges that on July 8, 2024, he gave the order for a missile strike using an X-101 cruise missile on the Ohmatdyt hospital in Kyiv. This attack resulted in the deaths of two people, including a doctor, and injured dozens more.

Ukrainian intelligence services also link Varpakhovich to other attacks on Ukrainian cities, including a June 2023 strike on Kryvyi Rih that killed eight people, and an April 23, 2022, missile attack on a residential building in Odesa, which claimed eight lives, including a three-month-old infant.

Information regarding the assassination attempt on the Russian general has so far only emerged from the Telegram channel and has not been independently confirmed.