Putin loses ANOTHER commander as colonel dies after being blown-up in Ukrainian missile strike branded a ‘gift’ for Vlad
HUMILIATED Vladimir Putin has lost another top commander.
Colonel Magomedali Magomedzhanov, 57, died in a hospital in naval port Sevastopol after being hurt in a strike on annexed Crimea.
He was wounded in a series of strikes on February 14 which hit a command post.
Magomedzhanov died later in hospital.
He was commander of the 61st Separate Kirkenes Red Banner Marine Brigade of the Northern Fleet, and deputy commander of Russia’s 18th army.
Sergei Melikov, head of Dagestan region, where the commander was from, said: “He died while performing his military duty in the Special Military Operation zone.
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“This military operation was the fourth and, unfortunately, the last for the colonel.”
His death was "another tragedy" from Putin's war, the public chamber in the region said.
While Russia has gained ground in Avdiivka following a Ukrainian retreat, it is suffering blows elsewhere.
Red Star military newspaper described Magomedzhanov as “brave, decisive, firm” and “a born paratrooper officer”.
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On Valentine's Day, Ukraine unleashed strikes on Putin's prized Black Sea Fleet as a "gift" to the Russian tyrant.
Dramatic footage showed a squad of Ukrainian special officers blasting one of the dictator's warships - killing all on board and sinking the vessel.
The 369ft Caesar Kunikov was blitzed by drones - the 15th Russian warship to either be sunk or destroyed by Ukraine since war broke out.
Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency released footage of the daring strike - spearheaded by Group 13 special forces.
It shows the landing ship's silhouette before it is blasted with an enormous explosion.
A clip from another sea drone then appears to show the mighty ship turned on its side in the Black Sea.
Ukraine's military said it attacked the ship with naval drones called “Magura V5” - leaving it full of holes.
The huge vessel - one of Russia's newest - was used by Putin’s armed forces to transport missiles and drones for attacks on Ukraine.
Russia's naval losses
VLADIMIR Putin has been left red-faced by a series of naval losses during the Ukraine war.
February 2024 - Putin's £55m Black Sea missile ship Ivanovets sinks
December 2023 - Novocherkassk landing ship destroyed
November 2023 - Putin's newest missile ship Askold wrecked before setting sail
September 2023 - Feared Black Sea Fleet HQ blown up
September 2023 - Submarine Rostov-on-Don and Minsk landing shop attacked by missiles
August 2023 - Olenegorsky Gornyak landing ship seriously damaged
June 2022 - Naval tugboat Vasily Bekh blown up
May 2022 - Ukrainian drone wipes out Russian high-speed assault boat
April 2022 - Black Sea flagship Moskva sinks after attack
March 2022 - Russian Navy Alligator-class landing ship catches fire
March 2022 - Raptor-class patrol boats hit and damaged by missiles
