Get you up to speed: Russia investigates deadly bombing targeting Major-General Omurbekov in Khabarovsk
A bomb explosion at a military garrison in Knyaz-Volkonskoe-1, Russia, allegedly targeted Major-General Azatbek Omurbekov, resulting in the death of Lieutenant Colonel Kuzmenko and injuries to several others. Omurbekov previously commanded the 64th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, which was involved in the Bucha atrocities.
Major-General Azatbek Omurbekov, previously commander of the 64th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade responsible for atrocities in Bucha, narrowly survived a bombing at his military garrison in Khabarovsk, according to local reports. The explosion led to the death of Lieutenant Colonel Kuzmenko and injuries to several others, with Russian authorities classifying the incident as secret, as reported by the Telegram channel VChK-OGPU.
The explosion at the military garrison in Knyaz-Volkonskoe-1 has resulted in the death of Lieutenant Colonel Kuzmenko and injuries to several others, with 20 individuals, including eight children, being evacuated. Major-General Azatbek Omurbekov, the intended target of the bombing and head of the 392nd District Training Centre for Junior Specialists of the Eastern Military District, remains in an undisclosed condition.
Butcher of Bucha ‘blown up’ by bomb planted inside mail box in Russian village | News World
Major-General Azatbek Omurbekov ‘narrowly survived’ explosion (Picture: AFP)
A Russian general branded the ‘Butcher of Bucha’ has been targeted by a bomb explosion at his military garrison.
Major-General Azatbek Omurbekov, 42, commanded troops to commit barbaric mass rapes and murders during Vladimir Putin’s initial invasion of Ukraine.
The blast in Russia’s Khabarovsk region at the village of Knyaz-Volkonskoe-1, 5,000 miles east of Moscow, allegedly ‘killed a colonel’ and left several others wounded.
The condition of Omurbekov, believed to be the target of the bombing, is unknown, but one local report said he ‘narrowly survived’.
The Russian authorities have classified the alleged bomb explosion as secret and imposed an information blackout, according to VChK-OGPU, a Telegram channel with reported links to the security services.
Omurbekov has been declared wanted by Ukraine for war crimes over the atrocities at Bucha, where Russian soldiers tortured and killed locals who had stayed in their homes in hopes of riding out the war.
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General Omurbekov was the target of the explosion (Picture: East2West)
Some 20 people were evacuated, including eight children, according to a statement.
‘One person was killed, and several others were injured. The personnel were put on alert. The explosion was aimed at General Omurbekov, who, since 2023, has been the head of the 392nd District Training Centre for Junior Specialists of the Eastern Military District.
It added: ‘In 2022, Omurbekov led the 64th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, which operated in Bucha.’
The person killed was identified as Lieutenant Colonel Kuzmenko, who worked as commander of the training communications battalion.
Pro-Ukrainian outlet InformNapalm said of Omurbekov: ‘If he hasn’t been caught yet, he will eventually be brought to justice, because he is a high-level war criminal who will not be able to escape punishment.’
Putin has rewarded Omurbekov with two promotions: first to full colonel and then to major-general. He was also named ‘Hero of Russia’ for his ‘heroism, bravery, fortitude and courage’.
Dozens of Ukrainians were tortured and killed by Russian soldiers in Bucha (Picture: Getty)
The brigade Omurbekov commanded is responsible for murders in Bucha, where Russian soldiers raped and tortured local Ukrainians.
On one of the first days of the Russian occupation in Bucha, local woman Tetiana Pomazanko thought the tanks were Ukrainian and walked out to see them.
Russians opened fire on her, killing her instantly. In early April, almost a month after she was killed, Tetiana’s body was still lying, half-buried in her yard.
Her mother, Antonina Pomazanko, said: ‘I buried her a bit in the night. There was so much shelling, I did not know what to do.’
Volodymyr Shepitko, 66, told the New York Times that when he returned to his home in Bucha after its liberation in 2022, he discovered the body of a naked woman, wearing just a fur coat, in the cellar under his garden shed.
Beside her body, there were condom wrappers and a used condom, along with the two bullet casings used to kill her.
Ukraine’s official ombudswoman for human rights, Lyudmyla Denisova, said she recorded one instance of sexual violence by Russian troops where a group of women and girls were kept in a basement for 25 days. Nine of them fell pregnant.
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