Officials in southern Russia confirmed on Thursday that a Russian deputy president and well-known former of Moscow’s war with Ukraine had died in a suspected bombing. In Stavropol, the 34-year-old Zaur Aleksandrovich Gurtsiev and another man died in an early morning blast. According to prosecutors cited by CNN, the explosion was caused by a “homemade violent device.” The investigation’s focus is being” the scene of the incident is being inspected, investigations are being ordered, and the necessary analytical actions are being taken are being carried out,” according to Russia’s Investigative Committee, which includes the possibility of a criminal assault being organized in Ukraine. Kurtsiev’s popularity was fueled by President Vladimir Putin’s” Time of Heroes,” a campaign to recruit war veterans for public office. According to the program’s site, Gurtsiev led underwater operations during the controversial Mariupol siege in 2022. He “introduced his advances in the systems of targeting weapons, which increased their reliability and efficiency many times, including hitting the Azov offer base,” the website claims. Mariupol was captured after an 86-day battle that left a large portion of the city in ruin. According to UN estimates, 90 % of private buildings were neither damaged or destroyed, with about 350, 000 people being forced to flee. Up to 20, 000 civilians were killed, according to Ukrainian leaders, whose state is unproven. In addition to the country’s numerous internal problems on Russian military numbers, Gurtsiev’s fatality comes as a result. An admitted Russian adviser was detained last month in connection with the car bombing that claimed the life of Russian military commander General Yaroslav Moskalik. Armen Sarkisyan, a pro-Russian army chief in eastern Ukraine, passed away in a bombing in northern Moscow in February.
