The mayor of the second largest city in Ukraine was shot in the back and is in critical condition, authorities said on Monday.
Hennady Kernes is the mayor of Kharkiv and was out jogging when he was shot by an unknown gunman, BBC reported. He’s currently undergoing emergency surgery and is considered in critical condition, various media reported.
“Several internal organs have been injured,” said Valerly Boyko, a spokesman for the Surgery Institute in Kharkiv, in BBC. “There’s bleeding and shock. The bleeding has been stopped, and emergency doctors are treating him for shock.”
The Guardian reported that he was actually shot while swimming in a lake.
He’s 54, and a leading figure in the Party of Regions of Ukraine’s ex-leader, Viktor Yanukovych.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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