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Three people, including two police officers, were killed in a blast in Moscow, Russian authorities have confirmed.
According to Russia’s Investigative Committee, two traffic police officers noticed a “suspicious person” standing near a police vehicle on Yeletskaya Street in the capital. When the officers attempted to approach and detain the individual, an explosive device was triggered.
Russian media outlets have reported that the third fatality was the suspected attacker, though officials have not formally confirmed that information.
The explosion occurred near the site of a deadly car bombing earlier this week that claimed the life of a senior Russian military officer. On Monday, Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov was killed when an explosive device planted beneath a vehicle detonated in Moscow.
In a statement posted on Telegram, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said a criminal case had been opened in the capital “in connection with an attempt on the lives of traffic police officers.”
Russian news organisations identified the two officers killed in the blast as Ilya Klimanov, aged 24, and Maxim Gorbunov, aged 25.
Sources within Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, known as HUR, told the BBC that a local resident carried out the attack, killing two members of Russia’s law enforcement services “as a sign of disagreement with the Kremlin’s aggressive policy.” The sources claimed the individual threw an explosive package through the window of a police vehicle, triggering the blast.
According to the same Ukrainian intelligence sources, two additional people were injured in the explosion and were taken to hospital with serious wounds.
Ukrainian military officials also told the BBC on Wednesday that the two officers who were killed had previously “participated in hostilities against Ukraine.” They further alleged there was “evidence of their involvement in the torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war.”
No further details have been provided to support those claims, and Russian authorities have not commented on the statements made by Ukrainian sources.
Alexander, a local resident who lives near the scene, told the Reuters news agency that he heard a powerful blast. “There was an explosion,” he said. “It was a loud bang — similar to the one with the car a few days ago.”
Following Monday’s car bombing, Russian officials said they suspected Ukraine was responsible for the attack, although no evidence has been publicly presented to support the accusation.
Ukraine has not confirmed whether it played any role in the killing of Lieutenant General Sarvarov.
It remains unclear whether Wednesday’s explosion and Monday’s car bombing are connected.
Sarvarov, 56, was head of the armed forces’ operational training department at the time of his death. He is the third senior military official to have been killed in bomb attacks in Moscow over the past year.
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