Ukrainian and Russian military officials said Tuesday that a missile strike killed Russian Federation Maj. Gen. Sergei Goryachev, who led the 35th Combined Arms Army headquarters, as well as several of his senior officers on Monday.
According to the Kyiv Post, Goryachev, 52, and his officers were killed during fighting in the Zaporizhzhia region as part of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, although the death has not yet been confirmed by either side of the conflict.
"As a result of an enemy missile attack, Maj. Gen. Sergei Goryachev, Chief of Staff of the 35th Combined Arms Army, was killed," the news outlet reported a pro-Russian blogger writing on Telegram.
The report said that Goryachev is the sixth Russian Major General killed in the fighting there, a military rank just two steps removed from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Newsweek reports that the killing comes just days after Ukraine launched its counteroffensive to recapture land seized by Russian troops since the war started in February, 2022.
Ukraine Defense minister Hanna Malia told the news outlet that forces have taken back seven villages covering over 35 square miles of territory in the past week alone.
CNN reports that the counteroffensive is generating heavy fighting along the eastern Donetsk and southern Zaporizhzhia regions including a number of Russian missile strikes that reportedly killed 11 and injured 28 in the city of Kryvyi Rih early Tuesday.
According to the report, air defense systems were able to intercept three incoming missiles, but others hit civilian infrastructure including a five-story apartment building in the city.
Rescue workers were trying to recover victims from the rubble and a day of mourning has been declared for Wednesday, the report said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a televised address Monday night that the fighting is "tough," but his forces are reclaiming Russian-held land.
"The battles are fierce, but we are moving forward, and this is very important. The enemy's losses are exactly what we need," CNN reported Zelenskyy saying. "Although the weather is unfavorable these days — the rains make our task more difficult — the strength of our warriors still yields results."
Ukrainian Chief Diplomatic Adviser Igor Zhovkva told CNN that the "ultimate goal" of the counteroffensive is to take back all the territories, including Crimea" occupied by Russian troops.
He cautioned that it could "take many months" to reach that goal and remove Russian forces from the territory.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.