Primary Suspect in Okhmatdyt Hospital Strike Linked to Earlier Kyiv Missile Attack

The Russian Lieutenant General identified by the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine as the top suspect for the strike on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital in Kyiv on July 8 2024, is now additionally suspected of having ordered a previous missile attack on Kyiv on June 26 2022.

The suspect has not been named officially, but sources say that his identity is likely that of Sergey Kobylash.

According to a statement from the Prosecutor General’s Office, Kobylash is suspected of ordering a missile attack using Kh-101 cruise-missiles which struck a nine-story apartment building in the Lvivskyi Kvartal residential complex in the Shevchenkivskyi district of Kyiv. The shelling resulted in the death of one man and the injury of three civilians, among them a 7-year-old girl, and caused significant damage to several residential and non-residential buildings.

The charges suspected of Kobylash are the violation of the laws and customs of war and premeditated murder. Under Ukrainian criminal law, these offenses could result in a life sentence. A pre-trial investigation is currently being conducted by the Security Service of Ukraine.

In early September, Kobylash was listed as the primary suspect in ordering the strike on the Okhmatdyt hospital, which killed 2 people and injured over 50, including 7 children.

According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Lieutenant General has been notified in absentia of the suspicions leveled against him. In addition, the International Criminal Court is already investigating the proceedings against him, in particular, the shelling of energy infrastructure under his leadership. The ICC has earlier issued an arrest warrant for the General for war crimes and crimes against humanity.