A senior Russian military official has died after a car explosion in southern Moscow, prompting an investigation by Russia’s federal authorities into a possible Ukrainian intelligence operation.

Russia’s Investigative Committee confirmed that Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov, head of the Operational Training Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, succumbed to his injuries following the blast on Monday.

In a statement, committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said investigators are examining several possible motives and perpetrators. “One line of inquiry is that the crime was organized by Ukrainian intelligence services,” she said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that President Vladimir Putin was informed immediately of Sarvarov’s death.

The explosion is the latest in a series of high-profile attacks targeting senior Russian figures since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Earlier this year, General Yaroslav Moskalik, a deputy head of the General Staff’s main operational department, was killed in a similar car bombing near Moscow. Russian authorities blamed Ukraine for that attack.

Ukraine has also been accused of involvement in a December 2024 bombing that killed Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia’s nuclear, biological, and chemical protection forces. Kirillov and his assistant were killed when an explosive device concealed in an electric scooter detonated outside his Moscow apartment. President Putin later described that incident as a “grave error” by Russian security services.

Other notable attacks include the April 2023 killing of military blogger Maxim Fomin in St. Petersburg, caused by an explosive hidden inside a statuette, and the August 2022 car bombing that killed Daria Dugina, the daughter of ultranationalist ideologue Alexander Dugin.

Ukrainian officials have not commented on the latest incident. Investigations into the Moscow blast are ongoing, as security around senior Russian officials continues to be tightened.