Former Ukrainian parliamentary speaker Andriy Parubiy was shot dead in the western city of Lviv on Saturday, with authorities launching an extensive manhunt for his killer.
The Prosecutor General’s office confirmed that an unidentified gunman fired multiple shots at Parubiy, killing the 54-year-old on the spot before fleeing the scene.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on X that “all necessary forces and means are engaged in the investigation.” Ukrainian authorities have also initiated a special operation codenamed “Siren” to track down the suspected assassin who fired “several shots” at the politician, CNN reported.
Newsweek has reached out to the Ukrainian parliament and ministry of internal affairs via email on Saturday for comment.
Why It Matters
Parubiy’s assassination represents a significant security breach in western Ukraine, a region generally considered safer than areas closer to active combat zones amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war that began in February 2022.
Following Russia’s invasion, Parubiy joined Ukraine’s territorial defense, the BBC reported.
As a key architect of Ukraine’s pro-European political transformation and a prominent figure in the 2013-14 Euromaidan protests, his death strikes at the heart of Ukraine’s democratic movement during wartime.
What To Know
Parubiy served as Ukraine’s parliamentary speaker from April 2016 to August 2019 and was secretary of the National Security and Defense Council during the critical period when fighting began in eastern Ukraine when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, Reuters reported.
According to the BBC, unverified footage appears to show the gunman disguised as a delivery courier, carrying a yellow Glovo delivery bag and using an e-bike for his escape. Lviv police chief Oleksandr Shliakhovskyi confirmed to reporters that the attacker fired approximately eight shots and described the killing as “very carefully planned.”
A spokeswoman for Glovo told the BBC in a statement the delivery company was “deeply shocked by the brutal crime” and would cooperate fully with the investigation.
Law enforcement sources told the news outlet that seven shell casings were found at the scene. The shooting occurred around noon local time in Lviv, prompting immediate condemnation from Ukraine’s highest officials and triggering a comprehensive investigation examining all possible motives, including potential Russian involvement.
Last month, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) said it successfully tracked down and “neutralized” two Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) agents who were suspected of assassinating Colonel Ivan Voronych, a high-ranking SBU Special Operations Centre officer, in Kyiv on July 10.
What People Are Saying
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X: “Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko and Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko have just reported the first known circumstances of the horrendous murder in Lviv. My condolences to his family and loved ones. All necessary forces and means are engaged in the investigation.”
Former President Petro Poroshenko said on Telegram: “Andriy was a great man and a true friend. That is why they take revenge, that is what they are afraid of.”
He added: “What can be said for certain is that these monsters are afraid, and that is why they kill true patriots and strong people. This crime is not just shots fired at a person. It is a shot at the army. It is a shot at the language. It is a shot at faith. It is a shot at the heart of Ukraine.”
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote on X: “You always remained a patriot of Ukraine and made a great contribution to the formation of our state.”
What Happens Next?
Ukrainian law enforcement agencies are conducting a comprehensive manhunt with “all necessary forces and means” deployed to locate the suspected assassin.
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