Ukrainian spies point to Russians in brutal attack

It’s amazing how detailed this work was. The explosives were hidden in the electric scooter and detonated by remote control, Ukrainian sources told the BBC.

The victim, Lt General Igor Kirillov, is believed to be the highest-ranking military officer killed outside the war zone since the attack began in full force.

His killing shocked the Russian military and politics. Sources in the Ukrainian security service SBU made it known that they were supporting it.

There have been several Ukrainian operations targeting Russian forces on Ukrainian territory.

But the fact that Ukrainian intelligence could point to the head of Russia’s radiation, environmental and chemical defenses outside his home southeast of Moscow raises questions about Russia’s security and how far Ukraine’s capabilities can stretch.

Choosing an attack motorcycle was a smart move. They lie abandoned everywhere on the streets of Moscow and attract no attention.

But since they detonated the device at the right time, this time when General Kirillov came out of his apartment next to his aide, the perpetrators must have had some kind of camera surveillance or watched in person.

It is assumed that his killing was not the first of the SBU on the streets of major Russian cities, so previous attacks on politicians and military officials in Russia can shed light on how these operations were carried out.

It was in April 2023 that a prominent war blogger Vladlen Tatarsky was meeting supporters at a restaurant in St Petersburg as part of a “creative night”.

During the event at Street Food Bar No 1, Daria Trepova, who said she was an art student, gave him a sculpture of a soldier’s head. A few minutes later, as Tatarsky was putting the gift back in the box, it exploded, killing him and injuring several others in the room.

Mrs. Trepova later continued in her trial that she knew nothing about the explosives inside this explosive device. He admitted that he was against the war in Ukraine but said he was told that there was a microphone inside.

The court sentenced him to 27 years in prison.

Regardless of his foreknowledge, there is no doubt that Ukrainian security forces are using deception to lure local Russians who may be sympathetic to the Ukrainian cause.

Actions can range from planning to destroy, in this case, bombing.

SBU is not above sending a hitman to reach his target, perhaps the worst methods of killing.

Last year, a pro-Russian former member of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ilya Kyva, was shot dead in a village outside Moscow. The killer managed to stay out of sight in the hotel grounds and shot Mr Kyva twice while walking in the park.

Again, Ukraine did not make official statements, but SBU sources said they were.

Five days ago, Russia’s top missile scientist, Mikhail Shatsky, was shot dead in a forest outside Moscow. In that case, the killing was blamed on the military intelligence service of Ukraine, although there is no confirmation.

Shatsky was responsible for modernizing the Russian Kh-59 and Kh-69 missiles which have caused great damage and loss of life in Ukraine.

The fact that Kirillov’s assassination happened within days of Shatsky’s assassination shows how Ukrainian spies infiltrated Russia.

It’s not just politicians or Russians with military connections who have been targeted.

In August 2022, Daria Dugina was killed in a car bomb attack, in a clear message to her father, Aleksander Dugin, who is considered a Russian intellectual who justifies Moscow’s aggression in Ukraine.

According to the Russian investigation, two Ukrainian citizens were involved in the attack – a clear example of Ukraine sending operatives to Russia to “finish” their target.

Natalia Vovk, 43, crossed into Russia from Donetsk in eastern Ukraine. He later met a Ukrainian who rented a garage where they assembled a bomb. Both Ukrainians, as it was suspected during the trial, managed to escape to Russia the day before Dugina’s murder.

All of these attacks show the variety of methods available to Ukraine’s special services, but some experts believe that it may not have been Kyiv that killed Lt Gen Kirillov at all.

It could be the result of an internal power struggle between the Russian military or an attempt by the Kremlin to remove one of the main witnesses of the war crimes, said Yuriy Karin, a military observer based in Kyiv.

If it was SBU, then the message is clear. “Even inside the streets of Moscow, Russian generals cannot feel safe.”