Ukraine Police Shoot Dead Moscow-Born Gunman After Kyiv Hostage Attack Kills Six

A gunman opened fire on civilians in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district on Saturday, killing at least six people and taking hostages before Ukrainian police shot him dead.

“A gunman who killed at least six people in Kyiv and took hostages has been shot dead by Ukrainian police, officials said”

Al Jazeera

Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said special tactical police units stormed a nearby supermarket after roughly 40 minutes of failed negotiations, and he said the gunman shot at police officers during the standoff.

Al Jazeera

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack began in the capital’s Holosiivskyi district, where the assailant opened fire on civilians in the street before barricading himself inside a nearby supermarket.

Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko identified the shooter as a 58-year-old born in Moscow, and multiple outlets reported that the weapon used was officially registered.

BBC reported that police negotiators spoke to the shooter for around 40 minutes while he was in the supermarket, and it said the attacker was killed following a shoot-out with police.

In a video posted online, Zelenskyy said, “The assailant has been neutralized. He had taken hostages and, tragically, killed one of them. He also murdered four people on the street. Another woman died in the hospital due to severe injuries,” describing the sequence of killings across the street and inside the supermarket.

Across the reports, officials described a timeline that began with street shootings and then shifted to a supermarket standoff lasting about 40 minutes.

CNN said Kravchenko described the attacker as killing four people on the street in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district before barricading himself inside a supermarket, where he killed another person and took hostages.

BBC

BBC similarly said the attacker began shooting on the street and then took others hostage in a nearby supermarket, and it reported that the attacker was killed in the supermarket following a shoot-out with police.

During negotiations, Klymenko told reporters that police tried to persuade the gunman, “realising that there was an injured person there,” and he said, “We offered to bring in tourniquets to stop the bleeding and so on. But he did not respond, so the order was given to eliminate him.”

CBC and PBS both quoted Klymenko’s account of the tourniquets offer and the decision to neutralize the attacker.

Several outlets also tied the attack to the shooter’s access to firearms through a permit process, including Klymenko’s account of a December 2025 licensing and medical certificate renewal.

Officials and leaders described both the negotiation effort and the immediate aftermath, while witnesses offered personal impressions of the gunman.

“At least six killed in Kyiv as gunman opens fire and takes hostages At least six people have been killed and others injured after a person opened fire in Kyiv on Saturday, Ukrainian officials say”

BBC

Klymenko said police tried to persuade the attacker and offered tourniquets, telling reporters, “We tried to persuade him, knowing that there was likely a wounded person inside. We even offered to bring in tourniquets to stop the bleeding, but he did not respond.”

Zelenskyy said four people who were being held hostage by the shooter inside the supermarket had been rescued, and he also said investigators were working with “several theories” about why the attack happened.

In a Reuters interview relayed by CNN, a police hostage negotiator identified as Valeriia said, “We arrived following a call and learned that an armed man was inside the Velmart supermarket. A special operation was launched, during which I spoke with him for 40 minutes. He made no contact during 40 minutes,” describing the negotiation period.

Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko described the killings as a “terrorist act,” and CNN said he was investigating the motives behind the violence.

Witnesses described the gunman as someone who kept to himself, with Hanna Kulyk telling the Associated Press, “He didn’t socialize much with people — just a greeting and he’d be on his way,” and saying, “You’d never guess he was some kind of criminal.”

While the core narrative of a Kyiv shooting and a supermarket standoff was consistent, the outlets emphasized different details and used different phrasing for the same official claims.

BBC focused on the uncertainty around the motive and the number of victims, saying, “The exact number of victims also remains unclear,” while it reported Zelenskyy said 14 people were known to have been injured, including a 12-year-old boy.

CBC

CNN and Fox News both described the attacker as a 58-year-old man born in Moscow, but CNN said authorities were working to establish the circumstances and motives as a “terrorist act,” while Fox News said the gunman had previously been prosecuted for criminal offenses and still held a valid weapons permit.

DW described the incident as “unheard of in wartime Kyiv following Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in 2022,” and it said five people were killed instantly and a young woman died in hospital, while it also reported that the gunman was killed during an attempt to arrest him.

PBS and CBC both quoted Klymenko’s negotiation remarks and the order to neutralize the attacker, but PBS added more detail about the permit process, including Klymenko’s statement about December 2025 licensing steps and the medical certificate.

Al Jazeera foregrounded the hostages and the standoff mechanics, stating that “Special tactical police units stormed the supermarket after roughly 40 minutes of failed negotiations,” and it reported that four hostages were rescued.

The incident triggered immediate investigative and public-information steps, with officials saying they would examine the shooter’s background, permit issuance, and the circumstances of the attack.

Zelenskyy said he had instructed officials to make all verified information publicly available and that he expected a swift investigation, writing, “We expect a swift investigation,” in a post on X.

CBS News

CNN said Zelenskyy told investigators they were trying to determine everything that could be known about him and why he committed these acts, and it quoted Zelenskyy saying, “Every detail must be examined, investigators are working with several theories.”

Klymenko said investigators would determine which medical institution issued the certificate, and PBS reported that he said the investigation will determine which medical institution issued the certificate.

Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said the killings were being investigated as a “terrorist act,” and multiple outlets said the SBU described the incident as terrorism.

Beyond the criminal investigation, CNN and DW emphasized that mass shootings are rare in Ukraine despite the huge number of weapons held by its citizens and the war context.