World
‘Golden toilet’ scandal: Zelenskyy faces deepest crisis yet as allies accused in $100M wartime scheme
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Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy is battling the deepest crisis of his presidency after a money-laundering probe named members of his inner circle, including an associate accused of living in “golden toilet” luxury, a former government official has claimed.
Their comments came as the president faces scrutiny over the investigation that agencies said Monday involves associates allegedly linked to a plot to siphon around $100 million from Ukraine’s energy sector during the war with Russia.
“Ukrainians don’t have any motivation to fight now because of enormous human rights violations and also because of this corruption now exposed,” the former official told Fox News Digital, under condition of anonymity.
FORMER ZELENSKYY ASSOCIATE ACCUSED IN $100 MILLION EMBEZZLEMENT SCHEME
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks from Kyiv, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
“People inside the country are already seeing this corruption and this is just part of the corrupt swamp. Zelenskyy is part of the problem,” they claimed.
Since Russia’s invasion in 2022, Ukraine’s financial system has come under scrutiny and now some Ukrainians are accused of taking kickbacks from projects meant to protect energy plants during wartime, prompting public outrage and undermining faith in government.
“This money laundering appeared to have been going on since 2022 and there were a lot of people who tried to stop this,” the former official said.
“Some say Zelenskyy was aware of these schemes and that he had approved them,” they claimed.
“There was also suspicion that money ended up in accounts abroad that benefited Zelenskyy and his inner circle,” they said.
FLASHBACK: WHAT HAPPENED THE PREVIOUS TIME ZELENSKYY MET WITH TRUMP IN THE OVAL OFFICE
Over 15 months, a sweeping investigation dubbed “Operation Midas” by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) uncovered the schemes.
In one major Energoatom probe targeting Ukraine’s state nuclear power company and its energy contracts, businessman Tymur Mindich was named.
Mindich co-owned the entertainment company Kvartal 95 with the president and, according to The Kyiv Independent, Mindich was alleged to be the ringleader of that network.
The Financial Times also reported that investigators found bags of cash and a gold-plated toilet in one of the bathrooms of his apartment.
TOP UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS IN ZELENSKYY GOVERNMENT SUBMIT RESIGNATIONS AMID $100 MILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stands alongside other government officials in a video posted to social media, vowing to defend the country from a Russian invasion. (Armed Forces of Ukraine)
“They were introduced many years ago and were running the business of 95 Kvartal, which includes film production and many other entertainment genres,” the former official claimed.
“Tymur had an apartment with golden toilets that was in the same building as Zelenskyy’s, and in 2021 Zelenskyy celebrated his birthday in Tymur’s apartment,” they said.
Another figure under investigation, Oleksiy Chernyshov, is a former deputy prime minister.
“He was also very close to the family, and he used to hold positions in the Zelenskyy government since 2019, and he has been accused of abuse of office,” the former official alleged.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION STAYS SILENT AS MASSIVE UKRAINE CORRUPTION SCANDAL ROCKS ZELENSKYY’S INNER CIRCLE
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy seen speaking during his inauguration ceremony at the Ukrainian parliament. (Sergei Chuzavkov/SOPA Images/LightRocket)
“Chernyshov started building big, three or four huge houses in their most luxury place in Kyiv.”
So far, in his nightly address on Nov. 10, Zelenskyy said:
“Everyone who put together a corrupt scheme must receive a clear legal response. There must be criminal verdicts.”
He stressed the importance of accountability in the energy sector and said that keeping Energoatom clean from graft is a priority.
ZELENSKYY MOVES TO ‘CLEAN UP’ UKRAINE’S ENERGY SECTOR AS CORRUPTION SCANDAL ROCKS LEADERSHIP
The Russian and Ukrainian delegations met for their preliminary talks in 2022. (Sergei Kholodilin/BelTA Pool Photo via AP)
Zelenskyy also praised the Anti-Corruption Bureau’s efforts, saying,
“Any effective actions against corruption are very needed. The inevitability of punishment is necessary.”
“Zelenskyy is using his extraordinary PR talent and will not step down in this probe,” the former official claimed. “Zelenskyy is not the kind of person who feels shame even if there’s a corruption probe… Zelenskyy has got everything from this war. He had a vertical of power, an unbreakable image, all the attention of the media. To some, he really depends on this and money,” they added.
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“Many Ukrainians believe in Donald Trump now, because he’s the only person who actually changed the narrative and changed the way this war is going,” the official said. “If not [for] Donald Trump we would not be talking about peace today at all, and every day of war is destroying Ukraine.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Zelenskyy’s office for comment.
World
Hantavirus-stricken cruise ship arrives at Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands
TENERIFE, Spain (AP) — A hantavirus-stricken cruise ship with more than 140 people on board has arrived at Tenerife, the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands, off the coast of West Africa, where the passengers and some of the crew are to disembark.
The World Health Organization, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expeditions have said that nobody on board the MV Hondius is currently showing symptoms of the virus. Three people have died since the outbreak, and five passengers who left the ship are infected with hantavirus, which can cause life-threatening illness.
As a hantavirus-stricken cruise ship is set to arrive at Granadilla port in Tenerife, Spain on Sunday morning, the WHO, Spanish authorities and cruise company Oceanwide Expedition are coordinating the disembarkation of passengers and some crew on ground.
The ship will not dock but will remain at anchor, with people ferried off in small boats. Everyone disembarking will be checked for symptoms, and will only be taken off the ship once evacuation flights are ready to fly them to their destinations.
There are currently people of more than 20 different nationalities on board.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, along with Spain’s health and interior ministers, were to be supervising the evacuation of the ship. Authorities have said the passengers and crew members who will disembark will have no contact with the local population.
Hantavirus usually spreads when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings and isn’t easily transmitted between people. But the Andes virus detected in the cruise ship outbreak may be able to spread between people in rare cases. Symptoms usually show between one and eight weeks after exposure.
World
North Korea updates constitution to require automatic nuclear strike if Kim Jong Un is assassinated: report
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North Korea has updated its constitution to require a retaliatory nuclear strike if leader Kim Jong Un is assassinated, according to a report.
The Telegraph reported the change comes amid heightened global tensions following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other officials during a recent conflict.
Khamenei was killed in an Israeli strike in Tehran as part of a coordinated U.S.-Israeli military operation earlier this year, Fox News Digital previously reported.
The constitutional revision was approved during a session of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly, which opened March 22 in Pyongyang, the outlet said.
ISRAEL TARGETS IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER IN SWEEPING STRIKES AS US JOINS ‘OPERATION EPIC FURY’
North Korea launched two cruise missiles and three anti-ship missiles from the destroyer Choe Hyon on Sunday, April 12, 2026, according to North Korean state media. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP)
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) briefed senior government officials this week on the update, according to the report.
The revised policy outlines procedures for retaliatory action if North Korea’s leadership is incapacitated or killed.
“If the command-and-control system over the state’s nuclear forces is placed in danger by hostile forces’ attacks … a nuclear strike shall be launched automatically and immediately,” the updated provision states.
KIM JONG UN CALLS SOUTH KOREA ‘MOST HOSTILE ENEMY,’ SAYS NORTH COULD ‘COMPLETELY DESTROY’ IT
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech at the inauguration ceremony of Saeppyol Street in Pyongyang on Feb. 15, 2026. (KCNA via KNS/AFP)
Reuters previously reported that North Korea revised its constitution to define its territory as bordering South Korea and remove references to reunification, reflecting Kim’s push to formally treat the two Koreas as separate states.
That marked the first time North Korea included a territorial clause in its constitution.
Last month, Kim pledged to further strengthen the country’s nuclear capabilities while maintaining a hard-line stance toward South Korea, which he has called the “most hostile” state.
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Kim Jong Un reportedly observed missile test launches in North Korea on Sunday, April 12, 2026. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service)
Kim has also accused the United States of “state terrorism and aggression,” and signaled North Korea could take a more active role in opposition to Washington amid rising global tensions.
Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
World
Iran warns US against attacks on tankers; Israel kills dozens in Lebanon
US-Iran ceasefire holds as Tehran warns Washington against attacks on tankers and Israel kills 24 people in Lebanon.
Published On 10 May 2026
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