Ukrainian intelligence (SBU) has reportedly assassinated Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia’s Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Protection Troops, Reuters reports.
The high-profile assassination occurred in Moscow when a bomb hidden in an electric scooter exploded, killing Kirillov and his assistant. Ukraine’s SBU agency confirmed their involvement in the assassination, which marks the highest-profile killing of a senior Russian officer on Russian soil since the start of the war. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev vowed revenge, and Russia opened a criminal investigation into the attack, considering terrorism charges.
Kirillov, 54, had previously been sanctioned by Britain over the alleged use of chemical agents like chloropicrin on the battlefield. He was also charged in absentia by Ukraine for the use of banned chemical weapons.
