Ukrainian security services linked to fatal Moscow explosion
As CNN has unofficially determined, the Ukrainian security services are behind the attack in which Igor Kirillov was killed. - Such an inglorious end awaits all those who kill Ukrainians. Retribution for war crimes is inevitable - said the source.
- Kirillov was a war criminal and an absolutely legitimate target, as he gave orders to use banned chemical substances against the Ukrainian military - the CNN source said. - Such an inglorious end awaits all those who kill Ukrainians. Retribution for war crimes is inevitable - added the station's informant.
Gen. Kirillov was known for holding briefings for the Russian Ministry of Defence since 2023, during which he reported that the United States is involved in a programme to develop biological weapons in Ukraine. He claimed, among other things, that the USA developed a method involving the release of "disease-carrying mosquitoes" towards enemy troops - recalled Meduza and Krymskij Wietier channels on Telegram.
Responsible for the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine?
Kirillov's death occurred the day after Ukrainian prosecutors accused the general of using banned chemical weapons in the war with Ukraine.
According to the Security Service of Ukraine, more than 4,800 cases of chemical munitions used by Russia were reported from the beginning of the war on Kirillov's orders - particularly grenades equipped with irritant chemical agents.
The United Kingdom also sanctioned Kirillov for the "disgusting use of inhumane chemical weapons" on the battlefield in Ukraine. In a statement announcing the sanctions in October, the British Foreign Ministry stated that Kirillov was "responsible for helping deploy this barbaric weapon". He was also accused of being an "influential spokesperson for Kremlin disinformation" and "spreading lies to mask Russia's shameful and dangerous behaviour".
Explosion in downtown Moscow
In Moscow on Tuesday morning (GMT), a bomb explosion occurred, resulting in the death of the commander of the Russian radiochemical and biological protection forces, Gen. Igor Kirillov, and his assistant. The explosion occurred on Ryazanskiy Prospect, about 6 kilometres from the Kremlin. The explosive device was hidden in an electric scooter, and the force of the explosion was so great that in a nearby residential building, windows were blown out, and entrance doors were ripped off on several floors.
A resident from the area where the attack took place shared with Reuters that, initially, they assumed it was the sound of cement or similar materials being unloaded. However, the explosion was so loud that it was clearly unrelated to construction work, and the experience was extremely frightening.
