Three people have been killed in a bomb blast in Moscow, two days after a senior Russian general was assassinated.
The blast occurred close to the site where the army official was killed. Russia‘s Investigative Committee said that two police officers and another person who was standing nearby have been confirmed dead.
‘An explosive device was triggered’ as the officers approached the suspect, who was near their service vehicle, said the statement by the committee, which probes major crimes.
An earlier statement on Telegram said investigators were inspecting the scene and carrying out forensic analysis, including ‘medical and explosive examinations’.
The area was cordoned off and had a large police presence, according to images broadcast on Russian television, which quoted witnesses who described an explosion that occurred at around 1:30 am local time on Wednesday.
Officials have confirmed that an investigation into the ‘attempted murder’ of law enforcement officers and ‘explosives trafficking’ has now been opened.
Before the explosion, two traffic cops saw a ‘suspicious individual’ standing near a police car. The explosives were detonated when they approached to apprehend him, the committee said.
According to local media, Russian officials have called for swift retribution in response to the latest attack.
There is a huge police presence as officials investigate the blast
Cops have blocked off the area and a probe into the ‘attempted murder’ of law enforcement officers and ‘explosives trafficking’ has been launched
On Monday, a top Russian army official was killed in a car blast. The latest attack happened on Yeletskaya Street, close to where Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov was assassinated
The blast took place on Yeletskaya Street in southern Moscow, near where Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov was killed on Monday by an explosive device that had been placed under his parked car.
Sarvarov had been the head of the Russian General Staff’s training department.
Monday’s killing of the general was the third of such assassinations in twelve months.
Since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, Kyiv has been blamed for several attacks targeting Russian military officials and pro-Kremlin figures both in Russia and in occupied parts of Ukraine.
Kyiv has claimed responsibility for some of the attacks but has not commented on Monday’s incident.
Myrotvorets, an unofficial Ukrainian website that provides information on people described as war criminals or traitors, updated its data on Sarvarov to say the 56-year-old general had been ‘liquidated’.
He was known for training Russian forces for battle with Ukraine.
An official said: ‘Investigators are pursuing numerous lines of enquiry regarding the murder. One of these is that the crime was orchestrated by Ukrainian intelligence services.’
It comes as Ukraine and Russia remain locked in talks with US officials to end the war after nearly four years of fighting.
This is a breaking news story with more to come.
