Russian nuclear bomber commander who ordered strike on Ukrainian children's hospital 'fights for life after being shot in the head in drive-by'

See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 07:14 EDT, 3 September 2026 | Updated: 07:35 EDT, 3 September 2026 A Russian nuclear bomber commander, who is said to have ordered a strike on Ukrainian children's hospital, has been left fighting for his life after being shot in the head in a suspected assassination attempt.Maj. Gen. Nikolai Varpakhovich, 56, commander of Russia's 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division, was reported to be in 'critical condition.'An unknown 'assassin' wearing a helmet on a motorcycle approached his private house and opened fire, according to reports. Local media reported that he was shot twice 'with a pistol' in the face and abdomen in the village of Probuzhdeniye, in the Engels district.The commander, blamed for atrocities against Ukraine, is in charge of Vladimir Putin's nuclear-capable strategic bombers at Engels airbase.He was being flown to Moscow on a medical evacuation flight.Ukraine's SBU security service has accused Varpakhovich of ordering the July 8 2024 strike on Kyiv's Okhmatdyt children's hospital, in which two people were killed and dozens wounded.He was also blamed for an April 2022 Kh-101 strike on an Odesa apartment block, which killed eight people, including three-month-old Kira Hlodan, her mother and grandmother, as well as an attack on the Kyiv television tower. Maj. Gen. Nikolai Varpakhovich, 56, commander of Russia's 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division, was reported to be in 'critical condition' Ukraine's SBU security service has accused Varpakhovich of ordering the July 8 2024 strike on Kyiv's Okhmatdyt children's hospital A emergency service worker is suspended above the blast site following a Russian missile strike on the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital Emergency workers respond at the Okhmatdyt children's hospital hit by Russian missilesThe EU has also formally identified Varpakhovich as commander of the Engels-2-based division responsible for the Kh-101 strike on Okhmatdyt and sanctioned him.Varpakhovich's division operates the long-range bombers that Russia uses to launch cruise missiles at Ukrainian infrastructure. He had been notified in absentia of suspected war crimes, media reports have said.The wounded general was rushed to hospital where bullets were removed.'The officer is now being prepared for transfer to Moscow on a special medical flight,' said one report.The 'assassination attempt' follows a series of attacks on senior Russian commanders blamed on Ukrainian intelligence.GRU deputy chief Lt-Gen Vladimir Alekseyev, 65, survived after being shot inside his Moscow apartment building in February.Meanwhile, Lt-Gens Igor Kirillov, 54, Yaroslav Moskalik, 58, and Fanil Sarvarov, 56, were killed in bombings in or around the capital between December 2024 and December 2025.