TAKEN DOWN
Watch as top Russian General is captured bloody and bruised by Ukrainian forces in humiliating blow for Putin
A BLOODIED and bruised top Russian General was captured by Ukrainian forces in the latest humiliating blow for Vladimir Putin.
Dramatic footage claims to show Colonel General Andrei Sychevoi handcuffed and on his knees alongside several weary Russian troops.
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The stony-faced military chief was reportedly snared by Ukrainian fighters during a counteroffensive operation in the Kharkiv region.
Captured and crestfallen, the detained soldiers were slumped on the roadside at gunpoint - while who appears to be Sychevoi sports a bloody nose.
Rumours began to swirl that the conquered colonel was one of Putin's top dogs after people spotted the resemblance between the two.
Eagle-eyed viewers noticed the two stars situated on the soldier's uniform are typically worn by Russian lieutenant generals.
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The motifs can clearly be seen on his shoulder as Sychevoi, 53, staunchly stares straight ahead.
According to Ukrainian journalist Andrii Tsaplienko's Telegram post, his country's men managed to ambush troops from the Samara SZSHR special response unit.
Reports suggest General Sychevoi had been responsible as the 'West' group commander for the area.
Others claimed he had tried to escape by trying to convince his captors that he was a lower ranking soldier.
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Sychevoi was placed on the European Union's sanctions list on February 28, just days after Russia launched its large-scale invasion.
He was noted as the commander of the 8th Guards Combined Arms Army of the Southern Military District.
However, there has been some speculation over his role in recent months amid reports he had taken over a post in the Western Military District.
Military analyst Rob Lee suggested he appeared to have been replaced "a month ago", citing a Russian Telegram channel.
Rights group Charter 97 have branded dubbed Sychevoi "a war criminal of the highest rank" who "gives orders in the war against Ukraine."
The 53-year-old's alleged capture has not yet been confirmed by Russian or Ukrainian officials.
But if verified, it will prove a huge embarrassment for warmonger Putin amid a series of blunders in recent weeks.
UKRAINE'S TRIUMPH
President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed the key city of Balaklia in the Kharkiv region had been liberated on Thursday.
Officials also hinted Russian invaders had faced a humiliating defeat in the wake of Ukraine's triumph.
The war-torn nation claims they have now annihilated over 50,000 of Putin's henchmen.
Ukrainian officials also claimed to have wiped out 200 of his paratroopers who were holed up in a makeshift hotel HQ in a missile strike.
Just days ago, one of the President's top colonels was killed in a suspected car bomb in Ukraine.
Bardin Artem Igorevich, appointed by the Kremlin to oversee the Ukrainian city of Berdyansk, was reportedly killed in the explosion that sent smoke pouring into the sky.
Although Kyiv hasn't openly taken credit for the attack, it is believed it was carried out by pro-Ukraine forces.
Bardin is just the latest Russian-imposed official to be killed in Ukraine, as Vlad's forces remain bogged down in the south and east of the country.
PUTIN'S FALLEN PALS
Last month, another top pro-Putin official was killed in a car bomb in Ukraine, with the blame placed on Ukrainian forces.
Russian collaborator Ivan Sushko, 40, was appointed by the Russian military as an official in Zaporizhzhia.
The married father died after the explosion ripped through his car, with the shocking moment captured on CCTV.
Putin loyalist Ivan Rogov said the attack was carried out by "saboteurs" in the region and vowed to track them down.
The dead man's wife Tatyana accused "Ukrainian Nazis" of carrying out the car bombing.
His death came just days after the daughter of Putin's alleged war guru was assassinated.
Alexander Dugin’s daughter died in a car bomb on the outskirts of Moscow, in an attack Russia blames on Ukraine, but Kyiv denies having carried out.
Ukraine's resistance movement has taken out a number of officials in recent weeks, with leading Russian stooges blown up, poisoned and shot, as the net closes on Putin.
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It comes as Ukrainian and Russian assassins race to take Putin out before he escalates his unwinnable war.
Putin faces a "double whammy" of threats from his inner circle who are believed to be secretly calling for his head, experts claim.
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