A senior Russian military official has been killed in a car explosion in the Moscow region, according to reports from Russian Telegram channels.
The news was confirmed by the state news agency Tass, with Russian authorities announcing they have launched a criminal investigation into murder and the illegal trade in explosives.
The official was named as General Yaroslav Moskalik, the deputy head of the main operations department of the general army staff.
The explosion occurred in the city of Balashikha, just east of Moscow. Authorities state that the blast had the explosive force equivalent to 300 grams of TNT.
Russian media indicate that Moskalik participated in several high-level military meetings, including a summit in October 2015 as part of the Normandy Group. This group, consisting of Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and France, oversaw the Minsk agreements aimed at ending the conflict between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists.
Moskalik was present at these talks alongside Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as a representative of the Russian military.
The Russian Telegram channel Baza reports that a bomb in a parked car was remotely detonated when the military official walked by. He reportedly lived nearby. Baza has released footage showing the impact of the explosion and a burnt-out vehicle.
Established in 2019, the channel is known for often being the first to report on attacks in Russia. Investigators believe the bomb was remotely detonated while the general was under surveillance with a video camera.
This is not the first instance of a Russian general meeting a mysterious end. In December, Russian General Igor Kirillov died in a bombing in Moscow. Ukrainian sources from the security service SBOe claimed responsibility for the attack at the time.
