TINDERBOX

Ukraine National Guard Soldier Kills Five in Mass Shooting at Arms Factory

The mass shooting appears to be unrelated to the buildup of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border.

As Ukraine braces itself for the possibility of a Russian invasion, it’s now mourning a mass shooting at one of its missile and rocket factories. The shooting appears to be unrelated to the buildup of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border, but it will do nothing to calm tensions in the country as it prepares for a military clash with its powerful eastern neighbor. According to The New York Times, a national guard soldier opened fire at the munitions facility in the east of Ukraine early on Thursday morning, killing five people and injuring five others. The suspected gunman, identified as 20-year-old Artemiy Ryabchuk, managed to escape the scene but was apprehended after an hourslong manhunt in Dnipro. The Ukrainian Interior Ministry released an image of the suspect being pinned to the ground. Four of those killed were fellow soldiers. The ministry said in a statement that the soldier fired “for undetermined reasons.”