An assassination attempt against Ukraine’s president has been prevented, a government official claimed early Wednesday, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported on its website.
The attempt on Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s life was planned by members of the elite unit of the Kadyrovtsy (Kadyrov followers), the report said, quoting Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, as saying on the air on the Ukraine 24 TV channel.
“The special operation that was to be carried out directly by Kadyrovtsy to eliminate our president is fully known to us today. I can say that we received information from representatives of the FSB (Russia’s Federal Security Service) who have no desire to take part in this bloody war. Thanks to this, the Kadyrov elite group that came here to liquidate our president was killed,” Danilov told Ukraine 24.
Read more: Ukraine receives $16.7M in crypto donations!
The Kadyrovtsy is a paramilitary organization in Chechnya that serves as the protection of Ramzan Kadyrov, head of the Chechen Republic.
🚨🚨🇺🇦#Urgent: Zelensky Assassination failed.
A unit of Chechen special forces sent on a mission to assassinate Ukrainian president #Zelensky was "eliminated," :head of #Ukraine's National Security. pic.twitter.com/By2N1TmhMU— Terror Alarm (@Terror_Alarm) March 2, 2022
Ukrainian President refuses to abandon his people
Important to note, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy had vowed to stay in Kyiv as his troops battled Russian invaders advancing toward the capital in the biggest attack on a European state since World War Two.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials say Russia aims to capture Kyiv and topple the government, which Putin regards as a puppet of the United States. Russian troops seized the Chernobyl former nuclear power plant north of Kyiv as they advanced along the shortest route to Kyiv from Belarus to the north.
“(The) enemy has marked me down as the number one target,” Zelenskiy warned in a video message as heavy fighting was reported on multiple fronts. “My family is the number two target. They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state.”
“I will stay in the capital. My family is also in Ukraine.”
Courtesy: Anadolu Agency with additional input by GVS