Russia-Ukraine war: Two pro-Russian officials in Donetsk injured from Ukraine shelling

Two pro-Russia officials were reportedly casualties in Ukrainian shelling that took place in the Donetsk region. The shelling comes amidst heavy fighting taking place in Ukrainian territory.

Russian news outlets reported Wednesday that two top pro-Russian officials were injured from Ukrainian shelling in Donetsk. The shelling apparently injured former Russian deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin and pro-Russian separatist Vitaly Khotsenko, the head of government of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic. Rogozin and Khotsenko were injured when rockets hit a hotel on the outskirts of Donetsk.

A Russian parliamentarian who was at the hotel said the assailants likely acted on a tip.

Rogozin was giving military advice in two Ukrainian territories that Russia claims to have annexed. Rogozin previously served as the head of Russia’s space agency ROCOSMOS but was replaced back in July. The former deputy prime minister has since taken on a more confrontational stance since ROCOSMOS was targeted by sanctions for its involvement in Russia’s defense industry.

On the same day, jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, stopped by his prison to recruit convicts to fight on the ground in Ukraine. Navalny, who is detained at a penal colony at Melekhovo, said an “eyewitness” described Prigozhin’s visit to them.

The witness said that Prighozin offered the convicts a pardon in exchange for surviving six months with the mercenary group and that 80 to 90 people accepted the offer after being given five minutes to consider. The witness did not reveal when the visit took place.

The White House said on Thursday that the Wagner group received an arms shipment from North Korea to help Russian forces fighting in Ukraine in another indication of the group’s involvement in the war. White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said that Wagner was looking for potential arms suppliers for its operation in Ukraine.

“We can confirm that North Korea has completed an initial arms delivery to Wagner, which paid for that equipment. Last month, North Korea delivered infantry rockets and missiles into Russia for use by Wagner,” said Kirby.

Kirby said that Wagner has around 50,000 of its personnel deployed in Ukraine. 10,000 of which are contractors, and 40,000 are convicts.