The commander of the National Guard of Ukraine, Mykola Balan, was dismissed on Thursday by the president of the country, Volodymyr Zelensky. The former deputy commander, General Yuriy Lebid, will be at the head of the formation. Balan resigned on Thursday morning, after a soldier under his command opened fire on other soldiers in the city of Dnieper, killing four of them.
The tragedy occurred on Thursday morning local time in the city of Dnieper. The soldier opened fire on other members of the National Guard Ukraine at the time of handing over weapons to officers on the premises of the Yuzmasz rocket facility. For unknown reasons, he shot five people from a Kalashnikov and injured another five, according to the ministry’s press release. You already have a plant that produces and tests defense, aviation and agricultural equipment.
A wounded woman died while providing medical assistance. The remaining fatalities are military. “The motives of this crime are not known yet” – emphasized the Ministry of Defense.
Commander of the National Guard dismissed
Mykola Bałan was dismissed from the position of the commander of the National Guard on Thursday. In accordance with a separate decree of President Volodymyr Zelensky, the head of the formation will be Lieutenant General Yuri Lebid, who in 2019 was appointed by President Zelensky as deputy head of the National Guard.
Mykola Bałan (on the right)SERGEY DOLZHENKO / EPA / PAP
Zelensky expressed his concern about the events in the Dnieper and promised that the public would be informed in detail about the results of the investigation launched against the command of the National Guard for failure to fulfill their obligations. He also expressed the hope that the tragedy will draw conclusions for the future, including the future.
Main photo source: SERGEY DOLZHENKO / EPA / PAP