The Kremlin has vowed swift retaliation following Tuesday's deadly bomb attack in Moscow that killed Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia's biological and chemical weapons unit, along with his deputy.
Speaking after the incident, Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, promised immediate revenge against Ukraine's leadership, whom Russia blames for the attack.
The explosion occurred outside an apartment building in Moscow when a remotely-detonated device hidden in an electric scooter was triggered as Kirillov and his assistant exited the building. The blast had an explosive force equivalent to 300 grams of TNT, according to Russian state media.
Svetlana Petrenko, spokesperson for Russia's Investigative Committee, confirmed they are treating the incident as a terrorist attack. "Investigators, forensic experts and operational services are working at the scene to establish all circumstances around this crime," she said.
Ukrainian security sources told media outlets that the country's Security Service (SBU) carried out the operation, claiming Kirillov was "a war criminal and an absolutely legitimate target" due to his alleged role in deploying chemical weapons against Ukrainian forces.
The 54-year-old general had been sanctioned by several Western nations, including the US, UK, and Canada, over accusations of chemical weapons use in Ukraine. The US State Department previously stated it had documented the use of chloropicrin, a World War I-era poison gas, against Ukrainian troops under Kirillov's command.
The attack marks one of the highest-profile assassinations in Moscow since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022. Several other prominent Russian figures have been targeted in similar attacks over the past two years, though most occurred outside the capital.
Russia has consistently denied using chemical weapons in Ukraine and has instead accused Ukrainian forces of deploying toxic agents in combat.
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