Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Tuesday a decisive decision to dismiss the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Army, Oleksandr Syrsky, from his post. This step comes at a sensitive time for the country, as the internal political arena is witnessing severe turmoil and conflicts that have affected the structure of the supreme military command.
Zelensky revealed the appointment of Mykhailo Drapatii, who was serving as the commander of the Joint Forces, as Syrsky's successor in leading the armed forces. This change, according to observers, aims to inject new blood into the military establishment and try to contain the successive crises that have plagued coordination between the political and military leaderships.
Oleksandr Syrsky, 60, took command of the army in early 2024 and is known for his long military experience and his contribution to repelling the Russian attack on the capital Kyiv at the beginning of the war in 2022. However, his recent period witnessed widespread criticism and tensions with other government parties.
Syrsky's dismissal comes in the wake of a wave of popular and political protests that demanded his departure, in support of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Fedorov had left his post about a week ago, amid accusations against Syrsky of being behind his exclusion and obstructing efforts to modernize the Ukrainian army.
Sources reported that the dispute between Syrsky and Fedorov, the young technical expert, centered on the vision for developing the military establishment and using modern technology in confrontations. Fedorov accused the dismissed commander of exerting direct pressure on the presidency to remove him from the scene, which Syrsky repeatedly denied before his dismissal.
On the ground, medical and military sources reported that at least three people were killed and more than 12 others injured in a violent Russian attack targeting the city of Zaporizhzhia. Russian forces used guided bombs in this attack, targeting densely populated residential areas in the city located in the south of the country.
Zaporizhzhia's military administration confirmed that the shelling caused a massive fire that engulfed seven floors of a nine-story residential building. Rescue and firefighting teams have been working since the early morning hours to recover victims and extinguish the fires that consumed large parts of properties and nearby cars.
Zaporizhzhia regional governor, Ivan Fedorov, stated that the victims of the attack were civilians in their sixties and forties. He pointed out that Russian forces are increasingly relying on glide and guided bombs to strike areas near the front lines, which increases the cost of human casualties.
In a related context, the United Nations Human Rights Office revealed shocking statistics indicating an increase in the number of civilian deaths and injuries in Ukraine. According to the UN report, the percentage of casualties increased by more than a third during the first half of this year compared to previous periods of the war.
The UN mission documented 1,396 deaths and nearly 8,000 injuries in the first six months of 2026, an increase estimated at about 37 percent. The United Nations attributed this significant increase to the intensification of Russian attacks using drones and long-range ballistic missiles.
Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, explained that Russian attacks systematically target vital systems that support civilian life. She added that the use of glide bombs in front-line areas destroys local communities and makes the continuation of normal life almost impossible.
Data indicates that short-range drone attacks alone have killed 418 people and injured more than two thousand others since the beginning of the year. This figure represents double the number of victims in similar attacks last year, reflecting a dangerous escalation in the pace of military operations.
For their part, residents of cities near the confrontations, such as Zaporizhzhia, express a state of constant terror due to the continuous intense drone flights. Testimonies from the field say that the attacks do not stop around the clock, starting with drones in the morning and ending with guided bombs at night.
Despite Moscow's repeated denials of targeting civilians, the facts on the ground and international reports confirm the continued targeting of infrastructure and residential buildings. The Russian war on Ukraine enters its fifth year amid political and military complexities that increase the suffering of civilian populations on both sides.
I decided that Mykhailo Drapatii would be the new Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and I expressed my gratitude to Oleksandr Syrsky and all our fighters for holding our positions.
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Zelensky dismisses Ukrainian army commander amid political crisis and escalating Russian attacks