Russian general who reported Kostiantynivka's capture to Putin killed in Ukraine
Russian Major General Anton Grunis, commander of the 4th Motorized Rifle Brigade, was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike in the Donetsk region. He was the officer who told Putin in July that Kostiantynivka had been captured, though Russian forces still don't fully control the city.
Lieutenant General Apti Alaudinov, deputy head of the Main Military-Political Directorate of Russia's Armed Forces, has confirmed the death of Major General Anton Grunis, commander of the 4th Motorized Rifle Brigade within Russia's Southern Group of Forces. Ukrainian and Russian sources had already reported the death before Alaudinov's confirmation.
Alaudinov, who also commands the Akhmat unit, gave no additional details. In a post on the Max messenger, cited by Russia's state news agency TASS, he said only that Grunis "died a hero, having fulfilled his sacred duty to the end."
Drone strike in Donetsk region
Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces and known by the callsign "Madyar," said Grunis was killed on September 12, 2026, in a Ukrainian drone strike in the Donetsk region.
According to Brovdi, Grunis was the officer who briefed the Russian president in July on the capture of Kostiantynivka, even though Russian troops still do not fully control the city. At the time, Putin had described Grunis as "a man with a Lithuanian surname, born in Kazan, who fights brilliantly."
Brovdi added that Grunis is the seventh senior Russian military officer to be killed in strikes carried out by Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces.
In late August, Russia's Defense Ministry had reported that Defense Minister Andrei Belousov awarded Grunis the Gold Star medal of Hero of Russia "for courage and heroism shown in the performance of military duty."
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