General Moskalik killed in explosion near Moscow, Ukraine suspected

Russian Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the Main Operational Directorate of the Armed Forces General Staff, was killed in an explosion near Moscow on April 25. The blast, caused by an improvised explosive device planted in a parked Volkswagen Golf, occurred as Moskalik was walking past, and investigators are treating the incident as a possible terrorist act. While no group has claimed responsibility, Russian authorities, including the Foreign Ministry, have suggested that Ukrainian special services may have been involved, citing Moskalik's history with negotiations on the Ukraine conflict. The attack is part of a pattern of assassinations targeting high-ranking Russian military figures since the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Security footage and reports confirm the powerful nature of the explosion and its targeting of Moskalik, with some sources mentioning a second possible victim, though this remains unconfirmed. Ukrainian officials have not commented, but the operation bears similarities to previous attacks for which Ukraine's secret services have claimed responsibility.