Russian General Fanil Sarvarov killed in Moscow car bomb blast, Ukraine link suspected
MOSCOW (The Uttam Hindu) : Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Army Operational Training Directorate, was killed in a car bomb blast in Moscow on Monday, according to the Russian Investigative Committee. The agency said an explosive device was planted under Sarvarov's Kia Sorento car.
Russian Investigative Committee spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko told the TASS news agency. "Initial investigations have revealed that on the morning of December 22, an explosive device planted under a car on Yasenevaya Street in Moscow was activated. The passenger was Fanil Sarvarov, head of the General Staff's Operational Training Directorate, who was injured in the car explosion and later died," Petrenko said.
According to the spokesperson, Moscow's Main Investigative Directorate has opened a criminal case under Article 105, Part 2 (murder committed in a socially dangerous manner) and Article 222.1 (illegal trafficking of explosives) of the Russian Criminal Code. He also stated that investigators are working on the motives for the murder from various angles. One of these theories involves Ukraine. There is a suspicion that the blast could be a conspiracy by Ukrainian security agencies. Fanil Sarvarov was born on March 11, 1969, in Gremyachinsk, Perm Region, Russia. He held all major command positions during his military career.
In 2015-2016, he handled tasks related to the planning and execution of military operations in Syria. In 2016, he was appointed head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff. According to the outlet "Project," Sarvarov previously participated in the Ossetian-Ingush conflict, both Chechen wars, and Russia's military operation in Syria, and later served in the Ukrainian war. Sarvarov was awarded the Order of Courage, the Suvorov Medal, and the Order of Merit to the Fatherland. News of the explosion first appeared on the Telegram channels Baza, Shot, and Mash. A TASS report later cited a source in the emergency service.