ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images
- On Friday, a Ukrainian missile struck Russia's Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Crimea.
- Russia has not confirmed any deaths but top military commanders were among those reported wounded.
- Since the invasion began, many high-ranking Russian military officials have been killed in action.
Top Russian military commanders were among those wounded Friday in a Ukrainian missile strike that targeted the Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Crimea.
Russia's Colonel General Alexander Romanchuk and Lieutenant General Oleg Tsekov were among those "severely wounded" in the strike, Ukrainian intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov told Ostap Yarysh, a Pentagon correspondent and anchor at Voice of America news.
Budanov said at least 9 Russian military personnel were killed and 16 wounded in the attack.
"Romanchuk is in charge of Russian forces in Zaporizhzhia where the main thrust of Ukraine's counteroffensive is occurring," Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, wrote in a post on X. "This suggests that it wasn't just a strike on the Black Sea Fleet HQ, but timed to target key senior leaders during a meeting."
The Russian Ministry of Defense initially confirmed only one soldier was killed in the attack, Insider previously reported. However, the Kremlin has been tight-lipped about confirming the number of Russians killed since the war began last year.
Representatives for Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and the Government of the Russian Federation did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Insider.
In May, the White House estimated 100,000 Russians have been killed or injured since the invasion began. The British government has reported as many as 60,000 Russians have been killed in action. While the exact number remains unconfirmed, many of Russia's top generals and military commanders have been killed in action.
The Friday missile strike is the latest in a series of relentless attacks that have targeted the Black Sea Fleet's ships and facilities, which Insider previously reported are an attempt to make holding Crimea "untenable" for Moscow's forces.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian officials said a command post near the port of Sevastopol was damaged in a missile strike. Within the last month, Ukrainian troops also launched a cruise missile strike on a Russian shipyard, damaging two warfighting vessels.