Ukraine says it is responsible for the explosion in Moscow that killed the head of Russia’s defense forces
Moscow – Head of the Russian Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Defense Forces, Lt. General Igor Kirillov was killed along with his deputy on Tuesday when a bomb exploded in Moscow, Russia’s Investigative Committee said.
Ukrainian security sources told CBS News that the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) killed Kirillov in a special operation. The claim could not be independently verified.
Sources said a scooter with explosives was detonated when Kirillov and his aide entered a residential building.
“Kirillov was a war criminal and a legitimate victim, as he ordered the use of illegal chemical weapons against the Ukrainian military,” a source with knowledge of the SBU told CBS News. “Such a terrible fate awaits everyone who kills the people of Ukraine. Retribution for war crimes is inevitable.”
ALEXANDER NEMENOV / AFP via Getty Images
The deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, said that the leaders of Ukraine will immediately take revenge for the murder, RIA news agency reported, according to Reuters.
The bomb was detonated remotely and contained 300 grams of TNT, Russian news agency Tass reported, citing unnamed sources in the emergency services.
“Investigators, intelligence experts and operatives are working at the scene,” committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said in a statement. “Investigations and searches are underway to establish all the circumstances surrounding this crime.”
He also said that the Kremlin was treating it as a terrorist attack.
ALEXANDER NEMENOV / AFP via Getty Images
The committee is conducting a major investigation into Russia.
Kirillov has been under sanctions from several countries including the UK and Canada for his role in Ukraine.
Kirillov was convicted in absentia by a Ukrainian court on December 16 of using chemical weapons banned in Ukraine during Russian military activity in Ukraine which started on Feb. 2022.
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The SBU said it has recorded the use of more than 4,800 chemical weapons on the battlefield since February 2022, mostly K-1 bombs.
During the nearly 3-year operation, Russia has done little to add to the one-fifth of Ukraine it already controls.
Kirillov has been in his post since April 2017, AFP noted.
Emmet Lyons contributed to this report.
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