Khartiia Commander Survives Assassination Attempt in Ukraine After Gun Misfires

An assassination attempt on Colonel Ihor Obolenskyi, commander of Ukraine's Khartiia Corps , failed in Kharkiv on July 31 when the attacker's weapon did not fire, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing law enforcement sources.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the attempt in a post on his official Telegram channel on the same day. He stated that the attacker and an accomplice had been detained and that procedural actions were underway.

Zelenskyy added that he had spoken with Obolenskyi and received a report on the case from Oleksandr Poklad, the acting head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), and that Ukraine would respond.

According to Ukrainska Pravda, the assailant approached Obolenskyi from behind near a barbershop in Kharkiv and attempted to shoot him, but the weapon malfunctioned. Law enforcement detained a 69-year-old resident and seized a Makarov pistol and ammunition.

Russian special services recruited the man remotely, posing as officers of Ukraine's SBU, Ukrainska Pravda wrote, again citing law enforcement sources.

The handlers told him Obolenskyi was a "traitor." As supposed proof, they sent an AI-generated photograph showing the commander at the Kremlin in a T-shirt bearing Russian symbols.

The detainee stated he received the weapon from an unidentified person in Kharkiv on his handler's instructions, according to Ukrainska Pravda. Investigators are working to identify that person, reviewing CCTV footage, checking for accomplices, and examining whether information about Obolenskyi's movements had leaked.

The Khartiia Corps, the 2nd Corps of Ukraine's National Guard, addressed the attempt in a statement on its social media on July 31. "We will respond to the assassination attempt on the battlefield. Holding the line!" the corps wrote.

Obolenskyi, who uses the callsign "Kornet," has commanded the Khartiia Corps since April 2025. Zelenskyy awarded him the title Hero of Ukraine on July 15.

The targeting of a senior Ukrainian officer fits a wider pattern of Russian intelligence directing plots against high-profile figures inside the country.

In June, Ukrainian counterintelligence dismantled a Russian military intelligence network preparing assassinations across Ukraine, detaining more than ten operatives and neutralizing an armed assailant who resisted arrest.

That GRU-trained cell  had tracked prominent public and military figures, including a Defense Ministry adviser, to carry out targeted bombings and close-range shootings.

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