Russia: 'Bomber squadron commander shot in the head'. Footage: suicide boat explodes in Sochi
Assassination attempt on a senior officer in the Russian Air Force: 'The shooter arrived at the house on a motorcycle and shot him in the head'. The officer is seriously wounded. According to unverified reports, it is a general who commands a strategic bomber squadron and was accused of attacking a children's hospital in Kyiv. At the same time, footage was released of a massive explosion of an unmanned vessel during a Ukrainian attack on the port of Sochi in the Black Sea. Putin: 'There is a chance for peace, but Ukrainian terrorism complicates it'. Norway seized a Russian ship in an isolated archipelago deep in the Arctic Ocean.
Media outlets in Russia report this afternoon (Thursday) on an assassination attempt on a Russian Air Force officer, near the city of Engels in the Saratov region, near which is located the 'Engels-2' base from which strategic bombers take off for long-range strikes against Ukraine. Media outlets including 'Mash' and 'Baza', which are considered to be linked to the Russian security services, reported that the assassination attempt occurred this morning in the village of Provuzhdeniya, located near Engels, and that the shooter rode a motorcycle to a private house and opened fire on the officer before fleeing. They reported that one bullet hit the officer's upper body and the second in his head – and he was hospitalized in serious condition. The officer's driver was also wounded in the shooting, but managed to escape and call an ambulance. Russian authorities announced that they have opened an investigation following the assassination attempt, but did not confirm the reports on the details of the incident – and so far there is no official confirmation regarding the victim's identity.
According to several unverified reports, the officer who was shot is Major General Nikolai Varfolomeev, commander of the 22nd Heavy Bomber Division – whose base is Engels-2. If he is indeed the officer who was shot, Ukraine probably has a good reason to want to eliminate him: just last Monday, the prosecution in Kyiv accused Varfolomeev of being the one who ordered in July 2024 to carry out a missile attack against a children's hospital in Kyiv, in which two people were killed. Kyiv, let us recall, has carried out a variety of liquidation operations deep inside Russia throughout the war, and last Thursday a senior officer in the Russian army was killed in a car explosion in Saint Petersburg. The officer's wife was also in the vehicle and was seriously wounded.
Meanwhile, the fighting between Kyiv and Moscow continues all the time, and at noon unusual footage was released from a Ukrainian attack on the port of Sochi in the Black Sea – an attack in which, according to reports, Kyiv used unmanned vessels (USVs). In the footage, a boat that is suspected to be a USV is seen advancing in the port waters – and suddenly ignites in a giant fireball, probably following its interception by Russian forces. The Ukrainian Navy confirmed this afternoon that it attacked in Sochi, and claimed that it managed to hit the Russian vessel Nefrit – a ship that it says takes part in operations related to oil and gas as well as the transfer of goods and crew members and underwater engineering activity.
Despite this escalation, President Vladimir Putin claimed today that he believes there is a 'chance for peace' – and at the same time warned that the Ukrainian attacks are harming it. Putin, who spoke at an economic forum in Vladivostok, said that several countries including the USA and China are trying to promote an arrangement to end the war, and added: 'In the end, the problem must be solved between the countries involved in the conflict – Russia and Ukraine. We are grateful to everyone who is trying to contribute to an arrangement. Is there a chance? In my opinion, yes, there is a chance'. He described these moves as 'acts of state terrorism', and said that they 'complicate the chances for bilateral talks'.
Meanwhile, and against the background of increasing tension between Russia and NATO, today Norway announced that it has seized the Russian ship 'Professor Molchanov' off the coast of the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. The seizure was carried out in accordance with a Norwegian court order and as part of a legal battle being waged by the Ukrainian energy company 'Naftogaz', which is demanding to enforce a $4.22 billion compensation awarded to it following the confiscation of its assets in the Crimean Peninsula, after its annexation to Russia in 2014. In Russia, they condemned the seizure of the ship and described it as 'piracy'. The Russian Embassy in Norway announced that Moscow will appeal the local court's ruling.
