Ukraine's Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky has been killed in a helicopter crash.
Denys Monastyrsky has been killed in a helicopter crash
The minister died in the accident alongside his first deputy minister Yevhen Yenin and state secretary Yurii Lubkovich when the helicopter came down in Brovary.
Nine people were killed when the helicopter came down and a further nine lost their lives on the ground, including three children.
Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Ukraine's presidential office, said that the minister had been on the way to a war "hot spot" when the helicopter went down but there is no indication that the crash was anything other than an accident.
Monastyrsky is the highest-profile casualty of the conflict in Ukraine so far.
The interior minister was an important member of President Volodymyr Zelensky's cabinet and played a key role in updating the public on casualties caused by Russian missile strikes since the conflict began last February.
Tymoshenko said that the interior ministry's work will not be affected by the loss of its leaders.
Monastyrsky's friend and MP Mariia Mezentseva said that the crash was tragic as the interior ministry had a significant role in Ukraine's response to the invasion.
She told the BBC: "He responded 24/7 to his colleagues, friends and family. He was very close to President Zelensky from day one of his presidential campaign."