The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has confirmed the deaths of two Russian agents following a suspected assassination of Colonel Ivan Voronych, a senior officer in the agency. The attack, which occurred in Kyiv, was captured on surveillance video and reportedly occurred during a daylight ambush. The SBU claims the operatives were part of an FSB-directed operation and were killed after resisting arrest during a special operation. The incident highlights the ongoing covert conflict between Ukrainian and Russian intelligence services, which have both carried out targeted killings since the war began in February 2022.
According to an investigation, the suspected killers—a man and a woman—were instructed to track Voronych’s movements and retrieve a silenced pistol from a stash site before carrying out the hit. The SBU statement read,