Zelensky faces deepening political crisis as protests dig in

Summary

In Ukraine, protesters say they’re giving Volodymyr Zelensky until Friday to re-instate the popular Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, and fire General Oleksandr Syrsky, the military chief of staff. The President removed Fedorov from his post last week, citing a clash between the two men. The protests have brought Syrsky’s unpopularity to the forefront. Through credited with stopping the Russian invaders at the gates of Kyiv in 2022, he’s since gained a reputation for brutality, and for wasting lives unnecessarily. He's also, as our correspondent Gulliver Cragg reports, accused of tolerance for corruption.