Russia-installed Crimea governor confirms four dead in soldier’s shooting spree
Developing story first seen 2 hours ago
The death toll from a soldier's shooting spree in Russian-occupied Crimea has risen to four, after previous reports indicated three civilian deaths. The Moscow-installed regional governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, said the gunman first opened fire on fellow soldiers, killing one and wounding another, before turning his weapon on civilians in the village of Khmelnytske. The attack raises fresh questions about discipline and security within Russian forces on the annexed peninsula.
The soldier killed three civilians — two men aged 71 and 59, and a 64-year-old woman — with three further people injured, in addition to the fellow serviceman he shot dead. Razvozhayev said the attacker had been detained and his motive was under investigation, but he has not been named and officials have not disclosed which branch of the armed forces he served in. Doctors were said to be working to save the injured, and the governor urged the public to rely only on official information rather than unverified rumours. Russia has controlled Crimea since annexing it in 2014, a move most of the international community regards as an illegal occupation of Ukrainian territory.
- Death toll rises to four, including a fellow soldier shot by the gunman
- Attacker detained; motive and identity remain undisclosed
- Incident deepens scrutiny of Russian military discipline in occupied Crimea
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Russia has occupied Crimea, a peninsula in southern Ukraine, since 2014, after seizing it in a move most of the world considers an illegal annexation. Since then, the territory has been run by Moscow-appointed officials, including regional governor Mikhail Razvozhayev, and has hosted Russian military personnel as part of the wider occupation.
The incident took place in Khmelnytske, a village in the occupied peninsula, where a Russian soldier is reported to have shot and killed a fellow serviceman and wounded another before turning his weapon on local civilians. Such attacks are rare and have prompted scrutiny of discipline and oversight among Russian troops stationed there, more than three years into Russia's full-scale invasion of mainland Ukraine.
The story matters because it offers a rare, officially confirmed glimpse of violence involving Russian forces within occupied Crimea, an area normally tightly controlled and shielded from independent scrutiny. Details such as the soldier's identity and motive, and the branch of the military he belonged to, have not been made public by the occupation authorities.
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Originally published by BBC World as “Soldier kills four in gun rampage in Russian-occupied Crimea”.