Moscow Blast Kills Top Russian Nuclear Defense Official and Aide

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In this grab from an AFPTV footage, Igor Kirillov, head of the Russian Defence Ministry's radiological, biological and chemical protection unit, speaks at a briefing over an alleged chemical attack on the Syrian city of Douma, at the Patriot park in the Moscow region on June 22, 2018.

Moscow’s Investigative Committee reported that Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia’s Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Defence Forces, was killed early Tuesday in Moscow by an explosive device near a residential building.

The blast, caused by a device planted in a scooter, also claimed the life of Kirillov’s assistant, according to officials.

Citing unnamed emergency services sources, the Russian state news agency Tass reported that the bomb detonated remotely.

The committee’s spokesperson, Svetlana Petrenko, stated that an investigation into the deaths has been launched.

“Investigators, forensic experts, and operational services are at the scene,” she said in a statement. “We are conducting investigative and search activities to determine all aspects of this crime.”

On Dec. 16, Ukraine’s Security Services indicted Kirillov for using prohibited chemical weapons during Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, which began in February 2022.

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) reported recording over 4,800 instances of chemical weapons use on the battlefield since February 2022, particularly K-1 combat grenades.

In May, the U.S. State Department also issued a statement noting the use of chloropicrin, a chemical weapon first employed in World War I, against Ukrainian forces.

Kirillov, appointed head of Russia’s nuclear defense forces in April 2017, faced sanctions from several countries, including the U.K. and Canada, due to his role in Ukraine.

Throughout the nearly three-year conflict, Russia has made incremental territorial gains in Ukraine, adding to the approximately one-fifth of the country it already controlled.