An intelligence official was shot in the capital on Friday, as reported by The Associated Press.
According to the AP, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko stated that Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev was hospitalized after being shot multiple times by an unidentified assailant at an apartment building.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was briefed on the incident, adding that law enforcement must enhance security for high-ranking military personnel amid the Ukraine conflict.
The AP cited the business newspaper Kommersant, which reported the attacker disguised themselves as a delivery courier. Alekseyev was shot twice in his apartment building stairwell, sustaining wounds to his foot and arm. The Russian official tried to seize the firearm but was shot once more in the chest before the assailant escaped, the report stated.
The U.S. President’s administration has been working to mediate peace between Russia and Ukraine.
This week, the two nations consented to a prisoner exchange, according to statements posted on X by U.S. special presidential envoy for peace missions Steve Witkoff and Ukrainian national security and defense council minister Rustem Umerov.
“Delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and the Russian Federation convened for a second trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi on February 4 and 5 to further initiatives aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. The talks were productive and centered on establishing the groundwork for a lasting peace,” the statement said.
“The delegations agreed that the Russian Federation and Ukraine will each release 157 Prisoners of War. This marks the first such exchange in five months,” the readouts noted.
The Associated Press contributed to this report