Ukrainian president senior aide survives assassination attempt

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 2:16 PM PT – Wednesday, September 22, 2021

The senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky survived what officials have called an assassination attempt. In a statement on Wednesday, Zelensky said the car of his top aide was shot at early in the morning when nearly 10 bullets struck the vehicle in Kyiv.

The aide was not hit by a bullet, but the driver of the vehicle was and has been recovering in the hospital.

“Serhiy is alive, his driver unfortunately is injured and hospitalized,” he stated. “The police are working on the site and a manhunt has been launched.”

Zelensky, who learned of the news on his trip in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, said he didn’t know who was behind the attack.

“Who is behind this? Frankly, I do not know,” he explained. “What are these powers? It could be internal, maybe external.”

Police examine the car after an apparent assassination attempt against Serhiy Shefir, a top adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, on September 22, 2021 in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Photo by Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images)

The head of the president’s political party said Russia could be behind the attack, but Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov immediately shot down those accusations by saying they had nothing to do with the attempt.

“Unfortunately, in our time in Ukraine, no matter what happens, none of the current politicians, to our regret, is able to exclude the Russian trace,” he expressed. “Of course, this has nothing to do with reality, it is rather a sign of an overly excited emotional state.”

Although Russia said they weren’t behind the assault, Zelensky warned those who were by saying the attempt was a “weakness,” but Ukraine’s response would be “strong.”

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