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SBU thwarts planned assassination of Ukrainian military intelligence officer in Kyiv

26 December 2025 14:09 (UTC +04:00)

The counterintelligence service of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has thwarted an assassination attempt planned against an officer of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine (GUR) in central Kyiv, APA reports citing the Security Service of Ukraine.

According to the information, the assassination was being prepared by an agent of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

It was reported that security officers detained the hitman at one of the capital’s food establishments while he was drawing a weapon and aiming it at the GUR officer.

According to the investigation, the assassination was to be carried out by a 28-year-old citizen of one of the Central Asian countries. He had been recruited by the FSB in his home country via a Telegram channel. The suspect arrived in Ukraine as a tourist and initially stayed in the city of Pervomaisk in the Mykolaiv region. There, he purchased several smartphones and SIM cards, regularly changing them to communicate with his FSB handler.

The individual later traveled to Kyiv, where he received from his handler a photograph of the potential “target,” an approximate geolocation, and the coordinates of the location where the weapon was hidden. He retrieved a pistol and ammunition from that location.