Protesters in Kyiv, Ukraine condemn President Volodymyr Zelensky’s dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, July 17, 2026

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Friday’s Coverage: Zelensky Under Pressure Over Firing of Defense Minister Fedorov

UPDATE 1121 GMT:

Eleven civilians were murdered and 62 injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses intercepted only one of seven missiles and 69 of 90 drones launched by Russia overnight. Missiles and UAVs struck 19 locations.

The Odesa region was again the primary target, with a 77-year-old man slain.

A Russian strike damaged a Marshall Islands-flagged civilian vessel. Four injured crew were among 17 evacuated.

In the Kherson region in the south, three people were murdered and 18 injured in attacks on 41 settlements.

In the neighboring Zaporizhzhia region, one civilian was killed and two injured, including a child.

In the Donetsk region in the east, three people were murdered and eight wounded.

In the Dnipropetrovsk region in the southeast, a 48-year-old man was killed and nine people injured.

In the Kharkiv region in the northeast, two people were slain and 17 injured, including five children, in attacks on Kharkiv city and 29 other settlements.

Casualties were also recorded in the Chernihiv and Sumy regions.

UPDATE 0617 GMT:

One civilian was murdered and eight injured, including two children aged 7 and 2, by a Russian strike on a passenger vehicle in the Kharkiv region in northeast Ukraine on Friday.

UPDATE 0607 GMT:

Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces struck another 13 Russian shadow fleet vessels overnight: eight dry cargo ships, one oil tanker, one gas carrier, one tugboat, and two floating cranes.

Since July 6, Ukraine has hit 172 vessels, 118 in the Sea of Azov and 54 in the Black Sea.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Larger crowds turned out on Friday across Ukraine for the second day of protests over President Volodymyr Zelensky’s dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.

Several thousand people gathered in the capital Kyiv and other cities calling for the reinstatement of Fedorov, who has been hailed for innovations turning the tide against Russia’s invasion this year.

Zelensky said he “understands, hears, and responds” to public concerns. Referring to the dispute between Fedorov and military commander-in-chief Gen. Oleksandr Syrski, he said he was forced “to choose between sides [when] what I want most is unity”.

However, Zelensky gave no sign of reversing his decision. Instead, he posted about a meeting on Friday with Fedorov’s proposed replacement, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.

Zelensky Tries To Repair Relations With Poland

The President tried to repair a rift with Poland, sparked by his decision ⁠in May to name a Ukrainian army unit in honour of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which killed tens of thousands of Poles in World War II.

Zelensky posted after a meeting on Ukrainian policy towards its neighbor that “there will be decisions on the diplomatic track”. Ukrainian archives on the Volyn massacre in summer 1943 will be opened, and permits will be granted for searches and exhumations. Support will be given to Ukrainian institutes for “expanding dialogue” with Polish counterparts.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk responded that Warsaw is “ready for a serious and friendly dialogue on the issues that unite us and those that divide us”.