At least six people were killed and over a dozen injured in a violent hostage situation in Kyiv on Saturday, according to Ukrainian officials. The attack unfolded in the city's southern Holosiivskyi district, where a gunman opened fire on civilians before taking hostages inside a local supermarket.
Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko reported that the assailant, a 58-year-old man originally from Moscow, was killed by police after a tense standoff. The shooter had used a legally registered automatic weapon during the rampage, which authorities are now investigating.
"We tried to persuade him, realising that there was an injured person there," Klymenko stated, explaining that negotiators spent approximately 40 minutes attempting to communicate with the gunman. "We offered to bring in tourniquets to stop the bleeding and so on. But he did not respond, so the order was given to eliminate him, especially after he killed one of the hostages."
President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that among the 14 injured was a 12-year-old boy. The fatalities included four people shot on the street, a woman who later died in hospital, and one hostage killed inside the supermarket. Four other hostages were successfully freed following the police operation.
Investigators revealed that the attacker had lived in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region for an extended period before the incident. Zelensky also noted that the man had set fire to his apartment prior to beginning his shooting spree.
While Kyiv has faced frequent attacks during Russia's ongoing invasion, such deliberate shootings targeting civilians remain uncommon in the Ukrainian capital. The motive behind Saturday's violence remains unclear as authorities continue their investigation.