A Russian general was killed in a car bombing in Moscow on Monday, with investigators saying they suspect Ukrainian intelligence was behind the attack.
The bombing targeted Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, and he died from his wounds. He was the third senior Russian military officer to be killed in a bombing this year.
“Investigators are conducting numerous investigations related to the murder. One of them is that the crime was orchestrated by Ukrainian intelligence services,” said Svetlana Petrenko, the spokesperson for Russia’s Investigative Committee.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was immediately informed of Sarvarov’s killing.
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This undated image provided by the Russian Ministry of Defense Press Service on Monday, December 22, 2025, shows Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, who was killed on Monday morning after an explosive device was detonated under his car in southern Moscow. (Press service of the Russian Ministry of Defense via AP)
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Sarvarov had previously fought in Chechnya and participated in Moscow’s military campaign in Syria.
The Ukrainian army has not yet taken responsibility for the attack.
Before Sarvarov, Russia lost the head of its nuclear, biological and chemical protection force, Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, in a similar bombing earlier this year. Ukrainian forces took responsibility for that attack.
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Police officers secure the area near where Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, was killed in Moscow on Monday, December 22, 2025, by an explosive device placed under his car. (AP photo)
Russian military officer Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik was also killed in a car bomb attack in Moscow in April.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in the aftermath of that attack that he had received reports of the successful “liquidation” of Russian military leaders, although he did not directly mention Moskalik.
Monday’s bombing comes as Ukraine, Russia and the US remain in peace talks. Russian officials said they were acting “constructively” on Sunday even as rockets rained down on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa.
Russian President Vladimir Putin listens to a journalist’s question during his annual press conference and call-in show at Gostinny Dvor, in Moscow, on Friday, December 19, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Putin also noted on Friday that the country’s “troops are advancing,” and expressed confidence that Russia would achieve its objectives through military force if Ukraine does not accept its peace terms.
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“The objectives of the special military operation will undoubtedly be achieved. We would prefer to achieve this and address the root causes of the conflict through diplomatic means,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
