A Russian general was killed in an explosion in Moscow

A high-ranking general of the Russian armed forces and his aide were killed in an explosion in Moscow.

Lieutenant General Igor Kirilov, the commander of the nuclear, biological and chemical defense forces (RBC), was leaving his apartment building on Tuesday morning when a device hidden in a scooter went off, Russia’s Investigative Committee said.

Pictures from the scene show the entrance to the building badly damaged, with burn marks on the walls and several broken windows. Two bags with corpses could also be seen on the street.

In October Great Britain imposed sanctions on Kirillov, saying he oversaw the use of chemical weapons in Ukraine and acted as “an important mouthpiece for Kremlin disinformation.”

On Monday, the special service of Ukraine, SBU, charged him in absentia in Telegram he was “responsible for the massive use of prohibited chemical weapons.”

Russia denies these accusations.

The Investigative Committee, the main investigative body of Russia, announced that it “opened a criminal case on the murder of two soldiers.”

“Investigators, forensic experts and operational services are working at the scene,” the report says.

“Investigative actions and investigative activities aimed at establishing all the circumstances of the crime are being carried out.”

Kirillov has been subject to an asset freeze and travel ban under British sanctions, with the Foreign Office calling him “an important mouthpiece for Kremlin disinformation.”

in may The US has accused Russia of deploying chemical weapons as a “method of warfare” in Ukraine, in violation of international law, which prohibits their use.

State Department officials said Russia used the asphyxiant agent chloropicrin to gain a “battlefield victory” over Ukraine.

The Kremlin then rejected the accusations, calling them “baseless.”