A Russian general is killed when a bomb explodes under his car, and Moscow says Ukraine is the likely culprit

Moscow A Russian general was killed Monday morning when an explosive device exploded under his car in Moscow, investigators said Ukraine He may have been behind this attack, which was the third killing of a senior military officer in one year.

Svetlana Petrenko, a spokeswoman for the Russian Investigative Committee, the country’s top criminal investigation agency, said that Lieutenant-General Vanil Sarvarov, head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, died of his wounds.

“Investigators are pursuing several lines of investigation in connection with the murder. One of them is that the crime was orchestrated by Ukrainian intelligence services,” Petrenko said.

There was no immediate comment from Kyiv.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was immediately informed of Sarvarov’s killing.

The Ministry of Defense said that Sarfarov had previously fought in Chechnya and participated in the military campaign launched by Moscow in Syria.

Just over a year ago, on December 17, 2024, Lieutenant-General Igor Kirillov, head of the army’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces, was dead. He was killed by a bomb hidden on an electric motorcycle Outside his apartment building. Kirillov’s assistant also died. The Ukrainian Security Service claimed responsibility for the attack.

An Uzbek man was soon arrested and charged with Kirilov’s murder on behalf of the Ukrainian Security Service.

Russian President Vladimir Putin described Kirillov’s killing as a “serious mistake” on the part of the Russian security services, noting that they must learn from him and improve their efficiency.

But in April. Another senior Russian military officer, Lieutenant-General Yaroslav Moskalyk, was deputy head of the Main Operations Department of the General Staff. He was killed as a result of the explosion of an explosive device planted in his car Parked near his apartment building outside Moscow. The suspected perpetrator was quickly arrested.

Moscow has also blamed Ukraine for several bombings and other attacks in Russia.