Russian judge in Ukraine's Donetsk region survives alleged assassination attempt

Nov. 6 (UPI) -- A Russian-appointed judge for the Supreme Court in the Donetsk region of Ukraine was hospitalized Friday after he was shot in an alleged assassination attempt.

Denis Pushilin, the leader of the Donetsk People's Republic, said in a statement on Saturday that Alexander Nikulin, the judge, was shot in Uglegorsk and is in stable but serious condition.

The Donetsk People's Republic is a Russian-backed separatist group that has controlled much of the region since Russia illegally annexed the Ukrainian territory of Crimea in 2014.

"The Ukrainian regime continues to display its vile terrorist methods," Pushilin said. "I wish Alexander Nikulin a speedy recovery."

Nikulin previously presided over the trial of three foreign fighters -- two men from Britain and one from Morroco -- sentenced to death for fighting for Ukraine. They were later released in a prisoner exchange in September.

The Institute for the Study of War, a think-tank based in Washington, D.C., said in an analysis last week that Ukrainians in occupied parts of the country have killed at least 11 officials and collaborators installed by Russia since the start of the invasion in February.

The news came as the British Defense Ministry, which has provided intelligence updates since the start of the war, said Sunday that Russia has made changes to its leadership in its war effort.

"Major General Alexander Linkov was reportedly appointed acting commander of Russia's Central Military District. Linkov replaces Colonel General Alexander Lapin who was purportedly removed from office at the end of October 2022," the British Defense Ministry said.

The British Defense Ministry said that if that change is confirmed, it would follow a "series of dismissals" of senior Russian military commanders.

Lapin has been widely criticized for poor performance on the battlefield by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Russia's infamous private military force, the Wagner Group.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in his nightly address Saturday called out Iran for lying in its latest admission that it had supplied Russia with Shahed drones.

"We shoot down at least ten Iranian drones every day, and the Iranian regime claims that it allegedly gave little and even before the start of the full-scale invasion," Zelensky said.

He claimed that Ukrainian forces had shot down 11 Shahed drones on Friday.

"And if Iran continues lying about the obvious, it means that the world will make even more efforts to investigate the terrorist cooperation between the Russian and Iranian regimes and what Russia is paying Iran for such cooperation," Zelensky said.

He added that there were little changes on the front lines of the war, which has been focused in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

Troops with the Wagner Group seized the village of Ivangard as fighting raged in Bakhmut, held by Ukrainian forces, Russia's government-run news agency RIA Novosti said in a statement.

According to The New York Times, most residents have fled Bakhmut as Ukrainian forces hold out in the city.