A high-ranking Russian military officer has reportedly been killed in an explosion in Moscow this morning.
Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov died when a device hidden in a scooter parked next to the entrance of a residential building was detonated, according to the Russian TASS news agency, citing Moscow’s investigative committee.
Kirillov, 54, was the head of Russia’s nuclear, biological and chemical defence forces.
The report added that his assistant was also killed in the blast and that a criminal probe into the attack has been launched.
Ukraine’s intelligence service said that Kirillov was responsible for “the massive use of banned chemical weapons” against the Ukrainian military.
Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has defended Igor Kirillov’s record.
“He worked fearlessly. He did not hide behind people’s backs,” she added.
“He met problems head on. For the Motherland, for the truth. Bright be his memory.”
