Top Russian general killed in Moscow

MOSCOW,  Russia

The Kremlin blamed Ukraine for a car bomb that killed a senior Russian military officer near Moscow on Friday, hours before U.S. President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

There was no official comment from Kyiv on the death of 59-year-old Yaroslav Moskalik, the latest in a series of Russian military officers and pro-war figures to be assassinated since the start of Russia's war in Ukraine.

"The Kyiv regime once again simply shows its true nature. The Kyiv regime continues to be involved in terrorist activity on the territory of our country," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told a state TV reporter.

"It shows, once again, that despite the peace talks we must be on guard and understand the nature of this regime."

Ukraine's SBU intelligence service did not respond to a request for comment on the killing of Moskalik, who was deputy head of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.

"According to available data, the explosion occurred as a result of the detonation of a homemade explosive device filled with destructive elements," Russia's Investigative Committee said in a statement.

Russian media outlet Baza, which has sources in Russia's law enforcement agencies, said a bomb in a parked car had been detonated remotely when the officer — who lived locally — walked past.

The Izvestia newspaper published video footage showing a person approaching a line of parked cars outside an apartment complex and an explosion that sent parts of a vehicle flying metres into the air.

Kommersant newspaper said a second person was also killed.