MOSCOW, July 7, (AP):  Russian’s transport minister was found dead Monday, hours after being dismissed by President Vladimir Putin, in what officials said was an apparent suicide. The dismissal came after a weekend of travel chaos when airports grounded hundreds of flights due to the threat of drone attacks from Kyiv.

Transport Minister Roman Starovoy, 53, served as Russia’s transport minister since May 2024 and was fired in a presidential decree earlier in the day that gave no reason for his dismissal. On Monday in Ukraine, meanwhile, at least 11 civilians were killed and more than 80 were injured, including seven children, in Russian attacks over the previous 24 hours, Ukrainian officials said. Russia fired more than 100 drones at civilian areas of Ukraine overnight, authorities said.

Russia recently has intensified its airstrikes on civilian areas after more than three years of war. In the past week, Russia launched some 1,270 drones, 39 missiles and almost 1,000 powerful glide bombs at Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday.