A Russian general has been killed in a car bomb attack near Moscow, the country’s top criminal investigation agency said.
Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the main operational department of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, was fatally wounded when an explosive device detonated in his vehicle in Balashikha, a suburb just east of the capital.
The country’s Investigative Committee confirmed the general’s death and stated that the device had been rigged with shrapnel to maximise damage. Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said forensic experts and bomb technicians were examining the scene.
Footage published by the country’s media outlets depicted a vehicle engulfed in flames in the courtyard of a residential block.
Authorities have not publicly identified any suspects, nor attributed blame for the attack.
Moskalik’s death marks the second fatal bombing of a senior military officer in four months. In December, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov was killed when a bomb concealed in an electric scooter exploded outside his home as he left for work. Russia blamed Ukrainian operatives for the assassination, which was later confirmed by Ukraine’s security agency.
Kirillov led Russia’s radiation, chemical, and biological protection forces—units responsible for defending against weapons of mass destruction and ensuring troop readiness in contaminated environments.
The latest assassination coincides with a scheduled visit by US President Donald Trump’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, who is due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow for the fourth time since February. Talks are expected to centre on a US-brokered peace initiative concerning the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
