A Russian airstrike on the northeastern city of Kharkiv in Ukraine has killed at least one person and injured 16 more, according to local reports.
It is the first time the city has been hit since 2022. The strike hit several homes and damaged the city’s institute for emergency services.
In recent days, Russia has increased its attacks on Ukraine. It has launched several missile attacks on the capital city, Kyiv, and damaged energy infrastructure across the country.
These actions seem to be in response to recent Ukrainian aerial attacks on the Russian border region of Belgorod. However, these kinds of sporadic attacks have been happening throughout the war.
READ MORE: Leaders pictured in flames as Russian media blames West for Moscow attack
Zelenskyy dismissed Oleksii Danilov, who served as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, thanking him for his service in a video address late Tuesday. The president gave no reason and said, without providing details, that Danilov will be “reassigned to another area.”
Zelenskyy replaced him with Oleksandr Lytvynenko, who served as head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service.
The National Security Council is a policy coordination body that is chaired by Zelenskyy. Danilov had held his position since October 2019, a few months after Zelenskyy took office.
The dismissal follows Zelenskyy’s decision in February to fire Ukraine’s chief military officer, Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi, and replace him with Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi. Tensions between Zaluzhnyi and the president grew after Ukraine’s much-touted 2023 summer counteroffensive failed to reach its goals. This month, Zaluzhnyi was named Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom.
