Car Bomb Kills Russian General In Moscow As Investigators Examine Ukraine Link

A senior Russian military officer has been killed in a car bomb explosion in Moscow, with investigators examining possible links to Ukrainian intelligence services, Russian authorities said on December 22.

Russia’s Investigative Committee said Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Russian general staff’s army operational training directorate, died after an explosive device detonated beneath his vehicle in the south of the capital.

What happened in the Moscow attack?

According to investigators, an explosive device was activated under Sarvarov’s car in a parking area on Yasenevaya Street in southern Moscow. The blast occurred at around 7am local time.

Sarvarov was taken to hospital with severe injuries, where he later died. Images released from the scene showed a heavily damaged white vehicle, with investigators and forensic teams deployed to examine the site.

What have Russian investigators said so far?

The Investigative Committee of Russia confirmed that it has opened a criminal case under Article 105 of the Russian Criminal Code, which relates to murder committed in a socially dangerous manner, and Article 222.1, covering the illegal trafficking of explosives.

Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said several possible motives are being examined, including the possibility that the attack was orchestrated by Ukrainian intelligence services. No conclusions have been announced.

Is there precedent for similar attacks?

Russian officials and media have pointed to a series of high-profile killings targeting Russian military figures since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Kyiv previously claimed responsibility for a December 2024 attack that killed Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia’s nuclear, biological and chemical protection forces, in an explosion outside his residence. Ukrainian sources have also been linked to earlier killings of Russian naval and military officers inside Russia and in Russian-controlled territories.

Who was Fanil Sarvarov?

According to Russia’s state news agency TASS, Sarvarov was born on March 11, 1969, in Gremyachinsk in Russia’s Perm region. Over the course of his career, he held a number of senior command positions.

He took part in combat operations during the Ossetian-Ingush conflict and the Chechen wars in the 1990s. Between 2015 and 2016, he was involved in planning and executing Russian military operations in Syria.

In 2016, Sarvarov was appointed head of the general staff’s operational training directorate, a role focused on readiness and training within Russia’s armed forces.

What happens next?

Russian authorities said investigations into the killing are ongoing, with multiple lines of enquiry being pursued. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The incident adds to heightened security concerns in Moscow amid the continuing Russia-Ukraine war and a pattern of targeted attacks on senior Russian figures since 2022.