Zelensky dismisses presidential office deputy amid corruption probe as drone attacks intensify
Ukraine’s anti-graft agencies investigate a money laundering group involving senior officials, while Russian forces report shooting down hundreds of drones in overnight strikes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has dismissed Iryna Mudra, the deputy head of the presidential office, following the emergence of a corruption investigation involving senior government figures. A decree confirming the dismissal was published on the presidential website on Wednesday, marking a significant internal adjustment within the administration as anti-graft agencies move to dismantle what they describe as a criminal organisation.
Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies announced an ongoing operation targeting a money laundering group allegedly run by current and former lawmakers, with high-ranking officials from the presidential office implicated in the scheme. Authorities have withheld specific details regarding the investigation, stating that further information would be released in due course. The precise role Mudra played within the alleged network remains unspecified in available reports.
Concurrently, the conflict zone saw intensified aerial activity, with Russia’s Defence Ministry reporting the downing of 453 Ukrainian drones overnight across various regions. In the Russian republic of Bashkortostan, a drone strike in the city of Ufa resulted in one injury and damage to an apartment building and several vehicles. Regional head Radiy Khabirov confirmed that a small fire broke out in an industrial area following the incident.
In Ukraine, a separate Russian drone attack targeted a bus in the southern city of Kherson, killing four people and wounding four others. Kherson regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin reported that the injured women were taken to hospital and shared blurred images of the damaged vehicle on Telegram. The incident adds to a rising toll of civilian casualties, with United Nations data indicating 437 civilian deaths in Ukraine during July alone.
Amidst the escalating hostilities, Russia and Ukraine exchanged 103 prisoners of war each, according to Russia’s Interfax news agency citing the Defence Ministry. This latest swap continues a pattern of intermittent prisoner trades throughout the four-and-a-half-year conflict, even as diplomatic efforts remain stalled and the two sides continue to diverge significantly on the terms for any potential peace resolution.
