Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired one of his most senior officials Wednesday as corruption investigators named a deputy head of the presidential office among the suspects in a money-laundering case.
A Russian drone struck a minibus in Kherson in southern Ukraine on Wednesday, killing four people, said Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the regional military administration, adding that four women were wounded. The stunning developments came a day after Ukraine’s recently fired defence minister demanded national elections, despite Russia’s more than 4-year-old invasion. The Russian Defense Ministry said its air defenses overnight intercepted 453 Ukrainian drones over multiple regions, as well as Russian-held Crimea and the Black Sea. Amid the fighting, Russia and Ukraine swapped 103 prisoners of war, according to Zelensky and the Russian Defense Ministry.
The latest suspects include a former lawmaker, the chairperson of a state bank’s board and the head of the bank’s supervisory board, as well as a deputy head of the presidential office, the agency said. Investigators searched Mudra’s office Wednesday, said lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko. Another Russian drone struck a civilian car in the regional capital, killing a woman, he said.
