Up to 4,000 “thugs for hire” fighters from Russia’s murderous Wagner Group are being unleashed to hunt down Kyiv’s elite.
The heavily-armed unit flew in from missions in Africa and the east of Ukraine with a hit-list of 24 men - their top target President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The two Klitschko brothers are also on the list for assassination by the rogue warriors, many of whom are ex-Spetsnaz special forces or have served long prison sentences.
One source told the Daily Mirror: “There are violent offenders who have done time inside among the Wagner Group, who are extremely well-trained.
“It is run by intelligence operatives, special forces and some extremely blood-soaked people who have done very bad things.”
This fits in with the high degree of existing espionage and human intelligence activity in the country and using the Wagner Group is an established long term method of the Russian military.
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In Donbass one member is suspected of rounding up local citizens into Donetsk police station, and having them tortured and killed, with their rotting, mutilated corpses deposited in prominent positions as warnings.
In 2020, investigative news site Bellingcat uncovered records revealing Wagner’s reputed boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, had made 99 calls to Vladimir Putin ’s chief of staff in eight months and frequently spoke to top officials at the Kremlin.
They operate under the guise of a private military company so they are officially distanced from the Russian state.
It means they are able to operate in plain sight, committing atrocities whilst being at arm’s length from the Kremlin.
After Moscow invaded last week, Zelensky addressed the nation, claiming that Russian special forces were in the capital searching for him as “target No 1”.
He added that his family's lives are at risk by Russian "sabotage groups" who had moved into the capital city.
However when he was offered the chance to flee by America he said: “I need ammunition, not a ride.”
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Yesterday Zelensky raised his fist as he branded Russia a "terrorist state" following a missile attack in front of a civilian public administration building in Kharkiv.
The President said the attack on the city's central square was an "open, undisguised terror attack" - saying "No one will forgive. No one will forget."
Speaking via video link to an emergency session of the European Parliament, he urged members to "prove that you are with us" in Ukraine's war with Russia, a day after officially asking to join the bloc.
European Union lawmakers, many wearing #standwithUkraine T-shirts bearing the Ukrainian flag, others with blue-and-yellow scarves or ribbons, gave Zelensky a standing ovation.
Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko are also being targeted by the Wagner Group.
Vitali, who has served as the Mayor of Kyiv since 2014, and his brother wasted no time in taking up arms to help defend their country.
Fellow boxers Vasiliy Lomachenko and Oleksandr Usyk have since followed suit.
On Sunday, Wladimir, issued a desperate video plea to other nations to help halt the invasion.
