Killing of a senior Russian general in the bombing The assassination, which took place outside his apartment building in Moscow, was the most audacious assassination of a senior military official ever and brought the Ukrainian war to the streets of the capital once again.
Here’s what you need to know about this attack and the person suspected of being behind it.
what happened?
Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov was killed on Tuesday morning on his way to his office by a bomb hidden in a motorized scooter parked near the entrance to an apartment building in southeast Moscow. Kirillov’s assistant was also killed in the attack.
According to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the bomb was activated remotely. The explosion was captured on video from a camera inside the car, showing the men leaving the building and the violent explosion.
Major General Igor Kirillov, head of the Russian military’s radiological, chemical and biological protection unit, attends a press conference at Kubinka Patriot Park on the outskirts of Moscow, Russia, June 22, 2018. (AP Photo, File)
Who were the victims?
Kirillov, 54, was the head of Russia’s radiological, biological and chemical protection forces. These special forces are tasked with protecting the military from the use of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons by the enemy and ensuring operations in contaminated environments.
he was below Sanctions from some countriesincluding the UK and Canada, for his actions. Ukraine war in Moscow. Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) on Monday opened a criminal investigation against Kirillov, accusing him of ordering the use of banned chemical weapons.
Russia denies using chemical weapons in Ukraine and accuses Kiev of using them.
Kirillov, who took office in 2017, has been one of the most high-profile figures to level these accusations. He has held multiple news conferences in which he has accused Ukraine’s military of using toxic substances and planning radioactive attacks, charges that Kiev and its Western allies rejected as propaganda.
His assistant Ilya Polikarpov also died in this attack.
People walk past an apartment complex on Wednesday, December 18, 2024 in Moscow, Russia. There, a bomb killed Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, commander of Russia’s Radiological, Biological and Chemical Defense Forces, and his aide Ilya Polikarpov. (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Who claimed responsibility?
SBU officials said Tuesday that the agency was behind the attack. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release information, described Kirillov as “a war criminal and a perfectly legitimate target.”
SBU officials provided video of the explosion.
Who was detained?
The FSB announced this on Wednesday. the suspect was detainedis listed as a citizen of the Central Asian country of Uzbekistan, where he was born in 1995. TASS and RIA Novosti news agencies identified him as Akhmad Kurbanov.
According to the FSB, the suspect said he was scouted by Ukrainian special forces. The Associated Press has not been able to confirm the circumstances under which the suspect gave statements to security authorities.
According to the FSB, the suspect stated that in exchange for Kirillov’s murder, he was promised $100,000 and resettlement in a European Union member state.
The agency said the suspects followed instructions from Ukraine to Moscow, where they obtained a homemade bomb and parked it on an electric scooter at the entrance to Kirillov’s apartment.
According to the FSB, the suspects rented a car to monitor the scene, installed cameras that live-streamed the scene to their personnel in the Ukrainian city of Dnipropetrovsk, and detonated a bomb when Kirillov left the building. It is said that he let it happen.
The suspects could be sentenced to up to life in prison, the FSB said.
According to Russian media reports, the FSB tracked the suspects by examining surveillance camera footage and mobile phone calls.
Investigators work at the scene where Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, commander of the Russian Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense Forces, and his aide (bottom center) were killed by an explosive device planted near a residential block in Moscow, Russia. are. , Tuesday, December 17, 2024. (AP photo)
What is not known yet?
The FSB did not say how the suspect was recruited. Interior Ministry official Irina Volk told TASS that he was detained in a village in the Moscow region.
It is unclear where he is being held or when he will appear in court. He is expected to hear the conditions of his pretrial detention in the coming days. Under Russian law, a person can only be detained for 48 hours pending a court order.
What does Russia say about this attack?
Russian officials described the bombing as a “terrorist act.”
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that it was “clear” that Ukraine was behind Kirillov’s killing, and spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kiev “does not shy away from terrorist methods.”
President Vladimir Putin has not spoken publicly about the attack, but Peskov said he expressed his condolences over Kirillov’s death.
A man lays flowers at an apartment building in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, December 18, 2024. There, the commander of the Russian Radiological, Biological and Chemical Defense Forces, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, and his aide Ilya Polikarpov were killed by a bomb. . (AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev described the attack as an attempt by Kiev to distract the public from military failures, saying, “Senior military and political leaders have warned of the inevitable retaliation.” “I will face it,” he vowed.
Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin called Kirillov “a professional soldier, an intellectual and a Russian patriot.”
Borodin “made significant contributions to increasing the effectiveness of radiological, chemical and biological defense forces to ensure the security and sovereignty of our country,” Borodin said. —-
Contributed by Ilya Novikov in Kiev, Ukraine.
