Female Russian Sniper With 'Kill Count Of 40' Captured By Ukrainian Soldiers

Ukraine says Russia is still trying to break through to Kyiv, despite Moscow saying it plans to focus on the Donbas region

A Russian woman, believed to be the most famous and feared sniper with a kill list of 40, has been captured by Ukrainian troops, Kyiv claimed Monday.

Local media reports identified the sniper as Danijela Lazović, better known as Bagira or Irina Starikova.

A Ministry of Defense post on Facebook revealed the captured sniper was a household name in Russia, local media reported. Starikova had received praise after becoming one of pro-Russia’s most skilled snipers, according to CITYAM.

She was captured after she failed to flee the country amid the ongoing war. Starikova's location was not disclosed. However, following her capture, Ukraine army official Vlad Ivanov reportedly said the prisoner was provided with the necessary medical assistance, and was currently being treated for injuries.

Starikova, who was reportedly born in Serbia, has been a pro-Russia fighter in Ukraine since 2014. In the last eight years, she has reportedly killed "at least four dozen people," local media Net.HR reported [Google Translate showed].

Starikova, who was a sniper of 11th Specialized Special Operations Division, was quoted as saying by Infobae: "They left, knowing that I was injured and had the opportunity to pick me up…hoping that I would die.”

Reports suggested Lazović was married to a soldier from Belarus named Aleksandr Ogrenich. Before turning into a deadly sniper fighting for Russia, she was a former handball player and devoted nun. International Business Times could not independently verify these details.

It also remained unclear if Lazović had any role to play in the latest Russia-Ukraine invasion.

It has been a month since Russia launched an offensive into Ukraine, bombing several cities with missiles that has displaced millions. Thousands of people, including several children, have died.

As Ukraine and Russia began the first face-to-face talks in two weeks Tuesday in Turkey, raising hopes of the war coming to an end, a rocket struck a regional administration building in the port city of Mykolaiv, killing at least three people and injuring 22 others.

Meanwhile, Russia’s defense minister said Ukraine’s military capability was seriously degraded, and it no longer had an air force. Sergei Shoigu also warned NATO of reaction if planes and air defense systems are supplied to Ukraine, Reuters reported.