A leading Russian opposition politician, former Deputy Prime Minister
Boris Nemtsov, has been shot dead in Moscow, Russian officials say.
An unidentified attacker in a car shot Mr Nemtsov four times in the back as he
crossed a bridge in view of the Kremlin, police say.
He died hours after appealing for support for a march on Sunday in Moscow against
the war in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned the murder, the Kremlin says.
In a recent interview, Mr Nemtsov had said he feared Mr Putin would have him
killed because of his opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Boris Nemtsov was one of Russia's leading economic reformers in the 1990s (file photo from 2009)
Mr Nemtsov, 55, served as first deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin
in the 1990s.He had earned a reputation as an economic reformer while governor
of one of Russia's biggest cities, Nizhny Novgorod. Falling out of favour with
Yeltsin's successor, Mr Putin, he became an outspoken opposition politician.
'Brutal murder'
Thorbjorn Jagland, secretary general of the Council of Europe, condemned
the killing, saying in a tweet: "I am shocked and appalled key opposition leader
Boris Nemtsov was shot. Killers must be brought to justice."
US President Barack Obama condemned the "brutal murder" and called on the
Russian government to conduct a "prompt, impartial and transparent investigation".
Mr Nemtsov was shot at around 23:40 (20:40 GMT) on Friday while crossing
Bolshoy Kamenny Bridge accompanied by a woman, Russia's interior ministry said.
He was shot with a pistol from a white car which fled the scene, a police source
told Russia's Interfax news agency.
According to Russian-language news website Meduza, "several people" got out of a car
and shot him.
One of the politician's colleagues in his RPR-Parnassus party, Ilya Yashin, confirmed
Mr Nemtsov's death.
"Unfortunately I can see the corpse of Boris Nemtsov in front of me now," he was
quoted as saying by Russia's lenta.ru news website.
Flowers were left at the site of the shooting through the night.
Analysis: Sarah Rainsford, BBC Moscow correspondent
A lawyer for Mr Nemtsov reported that he had received death threats over social media in recent months; but for now there's only speculation as to why he was targeted. He
openly opposed Moscow's role in the crisis in Ukraine - and the annexation by Russia
of Crimea. He had been planning a rare public protest on Sunday against both things -
and a growing economic crisis in this country.
Since his death, social media has been flooded with tributes to a man remembered as
by friends as decent, honest and a democrat . He had been pushed to the political
margins in Vladimir Putin's Russia, but he was still prominent enough for someone to
want to kill him.
Russian opposition leaders Ilya Yashin, left, and Ksenia Sobchak react to news
of the death of Mr Nemtsov
Mr Nemtsov feared his vocal opposition to President Putin's policies on Ukraine could get him killed
'Putin's aggression'
In his last tweet, Mr Nemtsov sent out an appeal for Russia's divided opposition to
unite at an anti-war march he was planning for Sunday.
"If you support stopping Russia's war with Ukraine, if you support stopping
Putin's aggression, come to the Spring March in Maryino on 1 March," he wrote.
Speaking earlier this month to Russia's Sobesednik news website, he had spoken
of his fears for his own life.
"I'm afraid Putin will kill me," he said in the article (in Russian) on 10 February.
"I believe that he was the one who unleashed the war in the Ukraine," he added.
"I couldn't dislike him more."
Mr Putin has been widely accused of fomenting the bloody rebellion in east Ukraine -
an accusation he denies. Fighting there followed Russia's annexation of Crimea in
March last year.
Almost 5,800 people have died and at least 1.25 million have fled their homes, according
to the UN.
The Ukrainian government, Western leaders and Nato say there is clear evidence
that Russia is helping the rebels with heavy weapons and soldiers.
Independent experts echo that accusation while Moscow denies it, insisting that
any Russians serving with the rebels are "volunteers".
No comments:
Post a Comment