KYIV, Ukraine - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired the heads of all of his country's regional military recruitment centers Friday, a sweeping move he said was aimed at combating corruption and ensuring that the recruitment system is "run by people who know exactly what war is."

Zelensky announced the blanket dismissal after a meeting of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, which he heads. He cited instances of "illicit enrichment," laundering "illegally obtained funds" and "illegal transportation of persons liable for military service across the border."

"Some took cash, some took cryptocurrency - that's the only difference," Zelensky said in a statement published on the official presidential website. "The cynicism is the same everywhere." Zelensky did not specify the total number of regional recruitment heads.

Ukrainian forces are struggling to advance in their two-month-old counteroffensive against Russia, and there are growing signs of fatigue among Ukrainians after a year and half of grinding conflict.

Zelensky's announcement is part of a wider campaign launched to root out official corruption, particularly in the military. Critics contend that this campaign is largely for show - aimed at appeasing Western allies and keeping aid money flowing - and has not targeted corruption at the highest levels.

In January, Deputy Defense Minister Vyacheslav Shapovalov resigned after he was accused of overseeing a scheme to purchase military foodstuffs at inflated prices. Shapovalov denied the charges.

In June, one of the country's leading news outlets, Ukrainska Pravda, or Ukrainian Truth, published an investigation showing that the family of Yevhen Borysov, the head of the Odessa regional draft center, had "purchased property and cars worth millions of dollars on the Spanish coast" during the war. Borysov denied the charges but was relieved of his duties soon afterward.

An investigation of the country's recruitment centers followed. Last week, in one of his nightly video addresses, Zelensky said the audit has found widespread malfeasance. "The inspection reveals many abuses. Frankly, disgusting ones," he said.

Last week, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry said on its official Telegram channel that it has uncovered "a large-scale scheme of issuing certificates of unfitness for military service," after conducting nearly 100 searches across the country. In one instance, draft officials were selling the certificates for $10,000, the ministry said.

On Friday, Zelensky said that 112 criminal proceedings have been launched against 33 suspects, but he did not provide further details.

The shake-up of the military recruitment system appeared to be all-encompassing: Even officials against whom "no evidence of crimes or violations had been found" would be dismissed, the president said. If they want to keep their rank "and prove their dignity," he added, "they should go to the front."

The commander of Ukraine's military, Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, will oversee the replacement of the recruitment center heads. In their place, Zelensky said, would be "warriors who have gone through the front or who cannot be in the trenches because they have lost their health, lost their limbs, but have retained their dignity and have no cynicism."

Latest on the war and its ripple effects across the globe.

Kyiv's mayor said first responders rushed to the children's hospital after missile fragments fell on its grounds on Friday. Vitali Klitschko also reported sounds of explosions and urged residents to stay in shelters. The Kyiv military administration then lifted air raid warnings.

• Russia's Defense Ministry said Friday's drone crashed in a forest in the Moscow region after being intercepted by electronic warfare systems. It said the drone was targeting a facility in Moscow and did not provide further details. Moscow's mayor said the drone had attempted to fly over the city; he reported no injuries or serious damage. A day earlier, Russian authorities said they thwarted two drones near the capital and 11 others over the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed illegally in 2014.

• A spokesman for Ukraine's military intelligence said security was "increasingly distant" for Moscow residents. "Given the dynamics of recent months … it would be logical to assume an increase in daily attacks," Andriy Yusov said in an interview with the Kyiv Post published Friday. The Kremlin has blamed mounting drone attacks in Moscow on Ukraine. While Kyiv has not officially claimed responsibility, Ukrainian officials are increasingly asserting that they see targets in Russia as part of the war.

• A top United Nations official in Ukraine was "appalled" by a Russian strike on a hotel in Zaporizhzhia. Thursday's attack, the second in Zaporizhzhia in about 24 hours, killed one person and injured at least 19 others, including four children, officials in the southeastern region said. The strike pounded a hotel used by U.N. personnel and other aid workers in Ukraine, said Denise Brown, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine.

• The co-founder of Russian technology giant Yandex called the war in Ukraine "barbaric," in a rare display of dissent among the Russian elite. Arkady Volozh, who has lived in Tel Aviv since 2014, told the Bell news outlet that he had friends and family in Ukraine and was "horrified by the fact that every day bombs fly into the homes of Ukrainians." Volozh resigned from the company last year after being placed under European Union sanctions. He said he felt a "share of responsibility" for Russia's actions.

• The military administration of Ukraine's Kupiansk ordered an evacuation of civilians from the area in the northeastern Kharkiv region. Authorities have said thousands of civilians would need to leave towns and villages near the combat zone around Kupiansk, where Ukrainian and Russian officials separately reported a raging battle.

• Kyiv will probably go another year without F-16 fighter jets, The Washington Post reports. A first group of six Ukrainian pilots is not expected to finish training on the U.S.-made aircraft before next summer, after delays in an instruction program, according to Ukrainian officials. Although the Ukrainian pilots are fluent in English, they must first undertake English lessons in Britain to learn terminology associated with the jets before combat training, officials said.

• Ukrainian forces have recaptured the heights over Bakhmut as they fight to encircle Russian troops in the eastern city, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar told the Guardian. Maliar cited progress in outflanking enemy forces after months of deadly battle. The Washington Post could not immediately verify the claims.

• About 1,000 Ukrainian marines are returning home after six months of training in Britain, the British Defense Ministry said Friday. The marines received training that included conducting beach raids using inflatable boats. Ukrainian units have had to cross waterways, including the Dnieper River, when attacking Russian positions.

• Britain will host an energy conference around the second anniversary of the Ukraine war in February, focusing partly on energy security, the government said. It said Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps will invite senior government ministers and industry leaders to the conference in London, which follows European efforts to reduce dependence on Russian energy.

• President Biden has asked Congress to approve $20.6 billion more in funding for Ukraine, including $13 billion to be allocated to military aid. The United States has committed more than $60 billion in aid to Ukraine during the war.

The Washington Post's Serhiy Morgunov and Natalia Abbakumova contributed to this report.