Thu Dec 19 19:37:32 UTC 2024: ## Uzbek Man Charged in Assassination of Top Russian General
**Moscow, December 20, 2024** – An Uzbek citizen, Akhmadzhon Kurbonov, has been charged in a Moscow court with the assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia’s Radiation, Biological and Chemical Defense Forces, and his assistant Ilya Polikarpov. The attack, which involved a bomb placed on an electric scooter outside Kirillov’s apartment building, occurred on Tuesday.
Russian state media reported that Kurbonov, who was detained on Wednesday, is accused of acting on behalf of Ukraine’s security service (SBU). The FSB, Russia’s Federal Security Service, alleges Kurbonov confessed to receiving a $100,000 payment and a promise of EU resettlement in exchange for carrying out the assassination. He allegedly monitored Kirillov’s location, remotely detonating the bomb via a livestream setup to his handlers in Dnipro, Ukraine.
The SBU has claimed responsibility for the attack, describing Kirillov as a “war criminal.” Kirillov, who was under sanctions from several countries for his role in the war in Ukraine, had been accused by Ukraine of using banned chemical weapons – a claim Russia denies.
Kurbonov faces charges of murder, terrorism, and illegal explosives manufacturing. He was ordered detained until at least February 17th. The Associated Press was unable to independently verify the circumstances of Kurbonov’s confession to the FSB.
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