Mayor of Ukraine’s Second-Largest City 'Fighting for His Life' After Assassination Attempt

Hennadiy Kernes, mayor of Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, underwent emergency surgery after he was shot in the back in an apparent assassination attempt on Monday.

Tatiana Gruzinskaya, a Kharkiv city spokesperson, said doctors are “fighting for his life.”

Kernes, 54, was reportedly jogging or cycling along the Belgorod highway that runs through the city of 1.5 million with his bodyguards close behind around 11:30 a.m. local time when he was shot. Iryna Kushchenko, a spokeswoman for the Kharkiv government, told reporters it was most likely carried out by someone hidden in the surrounding woods where he was exercising who knew of his daily routine. Police discovered one shell casing at the scene. Read more...