Senior Russian military personnel killed in targeted car bombing

A senior Russian general was killed in a car bombing on Friday, the same day when US president Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff had a three hour meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Lieutenant general Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy head of the main operations directorate of the Russian general staff, died in Balashikha, when an improvised explosive device exploded near a Volkswagen Golf parked in the eastern Moscow suburb, CNN reported.
Kyiv has not yet responded to the blast, which looked similar to past attacks targeting military officials and prominent supporters of Russia's war over the past three years.
Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, "there are reasons to believe that Ukraine's special services were involved in the murder," adding that if it is found to be a sign of Kyiv's "barbaric" nature and accused them of "escalating" attacks and trying to ruin ceasefire talks.
Russia’s investigative committee said the device had been packed with shrapnel and described it as “homemade.” A criminal investigation is now underway, and forensic experts have begun examining the scene. Tass had earlier claimed that the device was “homemade.”
The influential pro-Kremlin military blog Rybar suggested that Moskalik was not inside the vehicle when it exploded, but was walking nearby after exiting a building. While the details remain unverified, the style of the attack closely resembles earlier assassinations of high-ranking Russian officials, including that of Igor Kirillov, who died in a bomb attack last December.
Not much is known about, though he was known within military circles as “competent and demanding.” Rybar also said that “he was not well liked” as he was “tough on his subordinates.”.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.