Balashikha, Russia –
A high-ranking Russian military officer, Lieutenant-General Yaroslav Moskalik, has been killed in a car bomb explosion near Moscow in what appears to be a targeted assassination linked to Russia’s ongoing war efforts in Ukraine.
According to Russia’s Investigative Committee, the explosion was caused by a home-made device packed with shrapnel, detonating in a parked Volkswagen Golf outside a residential building in Balashikha, a town just east of the capital. The powerful blast on Friday morning claimed Moskalik’s life and, according to Kommersant, may have also killed a second, yet unnamed, individual.
Images and videos from the scene showed a car engulfed in flames, its frame completely gutted. Security camera footage obtained by local media outlet Izvestia captured the moment of detonation, sending debris flying as a person approached the vehicle.
Authorities have launched a criminal investigation but have not yet named any suspects. “The explosion occurred as a result of the detonation of a homemade explosive device filled with destructive elements,” the Investigative Committee said in a brief statement.
Prominent military figure
Lieutenant-General Moskalik held the position of deputy head of the General Staff’s main operational directorate and previously served as a military envoy during the “Normandy Format” negotiations on Ukraine in 2015. He was promoted to his current rank by President Vladimir Putin in 2021.
The car in which the bomb detonated was not registered to Moskalik, Agentstvo reported, but it had been parked near his known residence. Analysts suggest this may have been a security measure or misstep that allowed the attackers to exploit his routine.
Pattern of targeted killings
The incident is the latest in a string of high-profile killings targeting Russian military and pro-war figures. These include the 2022 car bombing that killed ultranationalist commentator Darya Dugina, and the 2023 St. Petersburg cafe explosion that killed prominent military blogger Maxim Fomin, known as Vladlen Tatarsky.
More recently, in December, Igor Kirillov—head of Russia’s chemical weapons command—was killed when a bomb planted in a scooter exploded in Moscow, a bold strike that Kyiv tacitly took credit for. In its aftermath, President Putin admitted that Russian security services had made “very serious blunders.”
With no claims of responsibility as of yet, the killing of Moskalik raises fresh concerns about the vulnerability of Russian military officials even within their own borders, and suggests a deepening covert war playing out alongside the battlefield in Ukraine.
