Ukraine claims responsibility for Russia-backed politician’s killing
- 8 November, 01:51
Ukraine has claimed responsibility for the assassination of a Russian-backed official in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region.
Mihail Filiponenko, a lawmaker from the Russian-installed assembly of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic was killed in a car bomb explosion on Wednesday. The Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense of Ukraine’s Defence Ministry claimed responsibility for the killing, announcing in a statement on Wednesday that others serving “terrorist Russia” would also be punished.
The intelligence directorate said in a Telegram channel that the operation to kill “war criminal” Filiponenko was carried out “jointly with representatives of the resistance movement.” The bomb in his car was detonated at 8.40 a.m, according to the directorate. The agency further accused the deceased of being “involved in the organization of torture chambers in the occupied territories of Luhansk region, where prisoners of war and civilian hostages were subjected to inhuman torture.”
Russia confirmed the killing of Filiponenko who had been active in the region’s pro-Russian separatist movement since 2014. Russia’s Investigative Committee said it had launched a criminal investigation into Filiponenko’s death. It should be noted that Filiponenko survived an assassination attempt in February this year.
There have been other assassination attempts against Russian-installed officials in Ukraine’s occupied eastern regions. Among the targeted officials was acting interior minister of the self-declared Luhansk people’s republic Igor Kornet who was “severely” wounded in an explosion in May.
