A high-ranking Russian general and his assistant have been killed in Moscow in an explosion reportedly orchestrated by Ukraine’s security service, according to a Ukrainian source speaking to the BBC.
Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, the head of the Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Defence Forces (NBC), was outside a residential building early on Tuesday when a device concealed in a scooter was detonated remotely.
The explosion killed Kirillov and his aide. Russia’s Investigative Committee (SK) confirmed the incident.
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) claimed that Kirillov, 54, was a “legitimate target” due to his involvement in war crimes, including the alleged use of chemical weapons.
On Monday, the SBU charged him in absentia, accusing him of being responsible for the mass use of banned chemical weapons.
The Ukrainian government has not yet commented on Kirillov’s death.
Photographs from the scene in southeastern Moscow showed the severely damaged entrance of a building, with scorch marks on the walls and windows blown out.
Two body bags were visible on the street. The area was cordoned off as Russian investigators conducted their inquiries.
Kirillov was subject to UK sanctions in October for his role in overseeing the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine.
According to the SBU, under his leadership, Russia used chemical weapons more than 4,800 times, though Moscow denies these allegations.
The SK has opened a criminal case into the deaths of the two servicemen.
Russian state news outlets reported that the explosion, which occurred on Ryazansky Avenue, had the force equivalent to 300g (0.7lb) of TNT.
Experts suggested that the device used in the attack was likely an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), a type of homemade bomb commonly made with accessible materials.
While assassinations of senior officials in Russia are not unprecedented, attacks in Moscow are rare.
Liza, a local resident, expressed her shock at the incident, noting how the war had previously felt distant but now felt much closer.
Many other residents also reported being startled by the loud explosion, initially mistaking it for construction noise.
The killing of Kirillov marks a significant development, with many Muscovites now seeing the war as a more immediate reality, rather than a faraway conflict.
The murder of the Russian general in the capital underlines the increasing proximity of the war to everyday life in Moscow.
Kirillov had served in various roles related to hazardous materials, including as head of the Directorate of the Chief of Radiation, Chemical, and Biological Defence Troops, before being appointed to lead the NBC in 2017.
In the wake of Kirillov’s death, UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman stated that the UK would not mourn the passing of someone who had “propagated an illegal invasion” and caused suffering to the Ukrainian people.
This assassination follows a similar attack last week, where prominent Russian weapons expert Mikhail Shatsky was shot dead near his Moscow home, reportedly by Ukraine’s military intelligence service.
Additionally, several senior Russian figures, including Valery Trankovsky, a naval officer, and Sergei Yevsyukov, a prison official, have recently been killed in explosions in Russian-occupied Ukraine.
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