Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, commander of a heavy bomber division and charged over the 2024 strike on Kyiv's Okhmatdyt children's hospital, has been shot twice near Engels airbase in Russia. The incident is part of a series of attacks against Russian military officers on their own territory. Two bullets struck Varpakhovich, one in the face and one in the torso, leaving him in serious condition before being airlifted to Moscow for treatment. He had been charged with ordering the missile strike that killed two people and injured over 30, including nine children, at the hospital where 627 children were receiving treatment.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
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Leaning score -0.35 for article 4629 (high confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-05
Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, commander of a heavy bomber division and charged in absentia by Ukraine over the 2024 Okhmatdyt children's hospital strike, was shot twice by a motorbike gunman near Engels airbase and airlifted to Moscow in serious condition.
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Varpakhovich → charge → condition
A senior Russian air force commander was shot twice at close range in the Saratov region on Wednesday morning, in the latest of a series of attacks against Russian military officers on its territory.
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commander → shoot → territory
An unidentified gunman on a motorbike fired twice at the officer as he was leaving a shop in the village of Probuzhdeniye in Engels district and fled.
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he → fire → district
One bullet struck him in the face, the other in the torso.
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bullet → strike → torso
He was taken to hospital in serious condition before being airlifted to Moscow for further treatment.
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He → take → treatment
Telegram military blogger channels identified the injured man as Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, commander of the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division of Russia's long-range aviation branch.
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channels → identify → branch
Russian authorities have not officially identified him.
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authorities → identify → him
The ASTRA Telegram channel noted that Probuzhdeniye is listed as one of Varpakhovich's registered addresses.
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Probuzhdeniye → note → addresses
The city of Engels — some 850 kilometres from Moscow — hosts the Engels-2 airbase, one of Russia's most significant strategic aviation facilities.
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city → host → facilities
Varpakhovich has been charged in absentia by Ukrainian authorities over the 8 July 2024 missile strike on the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv.
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Varpakhovich → charge → Kyiv
Ukrainian investigators said he ordered the attack, which resulted in a Kh-101 cruise missile striking the hospital.
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missile → say → hospital
Two people were killed and more than 30 injured, including nine children.
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30 → kill → children
The building was partially destroyed.
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building → destroy → ?
Ukraine's Health Ministry said 627 children were receiving treatment at the hospital at the time of the strike.
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children → say → strike
Ukraine's Security Service published a statement on 31 August saying it had compiled evidence against two Russian military officials.
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it → publish → officials
The second is Colonel Aleksandr Lutovinov, commander of a missile brigade in the 49th Combined Arms Army, who investigators said organised the 24 August 2024 missile strike on the Sapphire hotel complex in Kramatorsk.
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investigators → say → Kramatorsk
A security adviser for Reuters news agency was killed in that attack, and five journalists were wounded.
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journalists → kill → attack
The shooting in Engels is part of a series of gun and bomb attacks involving Russian military figures that has grown in recent weeks.
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that → involve → weeks
On 1 August, five people were killed and at least 19 wounded in an explosion at the Balzi Rossi restaurant in Moscow.
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19 → kill → Moscow
The presumed target was Colonel General Aleksandr Chaiko, commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces, whom Ukrainian authorities have accused of organising massacres in Bucha following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
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authorities → presume → 2022
Chaiko was also the commanding officer of Russian forces participating in the Syrian war on the side of ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad.
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Chaiko → participate → Assad
On 13 August, Russian Navy Captain First Rank Robert Shagiev was killed by an explosion in a street in Sevastopol.
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Shagiev → kill → Sevastopol
Shagiev was allegedly killed by a Russian national.
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Shagiev → kill → national
Last week, Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Sergei Sechkov was killed and his wife was taken to intensive care when an improvised explosive device planted in his car detonated in St Petersburg.
He was reportedly part of a Russian unit accused of attacks on civilians on the Slobozhanshchyna front in northeastern Ukraine.
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He → kill → Ukraine
