The deputy head of Russian army intelligence, Vladimir Alexeyev, was taken to hospital seriously injured after an assassination attempt.
02/06/2026, 09:06Feb 6, 2026, 3:29 p.m
According to authorities, the 64-year-old was shot in a residential building in northeast Moscow. The investigative committee said the perpetrator was on the run and the search was underway. The authorities have initiated criminal proceedings for, among other things, attempted murder.
Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev.image: x
According to media reports, the crime occurred early in the morning in Moscow. The general was shot several times in the back in front of the elevator in his home, reported the Telegram channel Mash, which is close to the Russian security organs. At least three bullets hit the secret service agent – two in the stomach area, one in the leg. “Alexeyev lost a lot of blood,” wrote Mash.
We are looking for a medium-sized man between 35 and 45 years old. The suspect is said to have been captured by cameras several times as he fled. Moscow set up a comprehensive surveillance system years ago with more than 200,000 cameras in building entrances and courtyards. Many of them are connected to a facial recognition system.
Born in Ukraine, military career in Russia
According to publicly available information, Alexeyev was born in Vinnytsia Oblast in what is now Ukraine. However, he spent his entire military career, which began in Soviet times, in Russia. There he was most recently deputy head of the army intelligence service GRU. During the Syria war, he led the Russian military’s intelligence operations in the Middle East country.
According to media reports, after the start of the war in Ukraine ordered by Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, he was also jointly responsible for the formation and organization of so-called volunteer battalions. He is also wanted in Kiev for providing data for the air strikes, in which civilian objects were repeatedly destroyed and civilians were killed.
Sanctioned by the West
He has been on Western sanctions lists for years, among other things because of accusations of organizing cybercrime and distributing the nerve agent Novichok in the wake of the affair surrounding the attempted killing of defected secret service agent Sergei Skripal in Great Britain.
This is not the first time that high-ranking Russian military officials have been targeted in assassinations. In April 2025, Lieutenant General Jaroslaw Moskalik was killed in a car bomb explosion. In December 2024, Igor Kirillov, the head of the Russian NBC defense force, was also killed in a bomb attack. The Ukrainian secret service claimed responsibility for the crime. Russia has condemned the attacks as terrorism and a sign that Kiev is not interested in peace.
Moscow raises allegations against Kyiv
In this case too, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made serious allegations against Ukraine. He sees the involvement of the leadership in Kiev under President Volodymyr Zelensky as proven. “This terrorist act has once again confirmed the Zelensky regime’s focus on constant provocations, which in turn are aimed at undermining the negotiation process,” said the Russian chief diplomat. Moscow will decide how the attack will affect the negotiation process.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an initial reaction that he hoped that Alexeyev would survive and get back on his feet. “It is clear that such (high-ranking) commanders and specialists are in danger during the war.” However, he demanded that it was the responsibility of the own secret service to protect these people.
Explosive timing of the attack
The attack on Alexeyev comes at a delicate time: a round of negotiations on ending the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, which has been going on for four years, only ended on Thursday in Abu Dhabi on the Persian Gulf. The Russian delegation was led by Igor Kostyukov, the head of the Russian military intelligence service GRU and Alexeyev’s immediate superior.
The negotiations, which began in January and brought both warring parties together for the first time after months of radio silence, are described as productive by everyone involved. The tangible result so far has been a prisoner exchange. The most difficult issue continues to be Russia’s demand for Ukraine to cede further territories. (hkl/sda/dpa)