A retired Russian commander hailed as a war hero for leading a bombing in Mariupol that left 8,000 Ukrainian civilians dead has been killed in an apparent suicide attack, Russian officials said.
Zaur Gurtsiev, 34, a decorated former major, was blown up in the southern Russian city of Stavropol on Thursday, according to Russia’s Investigative Committee.
Wild surveillance video circulating on social media and in Russian state media captured Gurtsiev and an unidentified man standing in a darkened street, close to a line of cars, just moments before the blast erupted.
The other man appeared to approach Gurtsiev seconds before a bright light filled the screen and the footage cut out.
Authorities haven’t disclosed what caused the explosion but local reports indicated a grenade or TNT sticks were to blame.
Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said the bodies of the two men were later found with multiple injuries.
“As part of the investigation, the scene of the incident is being inspected, examinations are being ordered, and the necessary investigative actions are being carried out to establish all the circumstances of the incident,” the agency said in a statement.
Stavropol Region Governor Vladimir Vladimirov confirmed Gurtsiev’s death in a Telegram post, saying that authorities haven’t ruled out a “terrorist attack.”
“Law enforcement agencies and special services are working at the scene. Investigative actions are underway. All versions are being considered, including the organization of a terrorist attack involving Nazis from Ukraine,” he said.
“The situation in the city is calm. The situation is under control.”
Gurtsiev, a city official who was due to be appointed to Stavropol’s regional administration, had received several honors for helping command Russia’s bombing of Mariupol in the early months of the Ukraine war.
The attack on the Ukrainian port city left roughly 8,000 civilians dead.
Gurtsiev, too, had taken part in a Time of Heroes program set up by Russian President Vladimir Putin that was designed to promote war veterans to government positions, local media said.
“Gurtsiev, despite his relatively young age, led the air part of the operation to liberate Mariupol,” the program’s website reads.
“He introduced his developments in the technology of targeting missiles, which allowed them to increase their accuracy and effectiveness many times over, including hitting the Azov supply base.”
With Post wires