The Russian general from the Bucha massacre survives a bomb attack in the center of Moscow

MoscowA terrorist attack in the heart of Moscow has once again raised alarms among the Russian army's top brass. On Saturday evening, a bomb exploded at the entrance of a luxury restaurant where General Aleksandr Txaiko was celebrating his fifty-fifth birthday. He and the guests from the political and military elite present were unharmed, but five customers of the establishment died and 19 more were injured, some of whom are in critical condition.

According to various Russian media, a woman carrying what appeared to be a gift tried to access the venue's terrace, but a security guard stopped her, finding it suspicious. At that moment, someone remotely detonated the device, loaded with a kilo of TNT and shrapnel, killing both of them instantly, as well as a third person. The other two victims died in the hospital this Sunday. It is most likely that the person tasked with delivering the package was unaware that an explosive was hidden inside the box. 

The target of the failed attack, General Txaiko, was not only celebrating his birthday but also his appointment, a few months ago, as commander-in-chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces. Although no one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, it has emerged that Txaiko had led the troops of the Eastern Military District, responsible for war crimes in Bucha, a town in the Kyiv region where more than 400 civilians were murdered at the beginning of the war.The general had organized the party at the Italian restaurant Balzi Rossi, a very exclusive establishment at the foot of one of the emblematic skyscrapers built at the end of Stalinism, the so-called Seven Sisters. Initially, Russian state media reported that the explosion had been caused by a gas leak in the kitchen, but the chef himself quickly denied it.

Attacks against Russian commanders in Moscow are a very delicate issue that worries Vladimir Putin. Some media outlets claim that the restaurant was guarded by agents of the Federal Protection Service (FSO), the body that oversees the security of high-ranking state officials, while others limit themselves to talking about a private security guard. Numerous military personnel, members of the secret services, and deputies attended the evening. 

The general's irresponsibility

The Kremlin has not commented on the attack, but channels in the warmongering orbit are outraged by what they consider an irresponsibility of the general and his entourage. They criticize that the celebration took place and that Ukrainian intelligence could presumably find out all the information about the event. "Our people cannot understand that there is a war and that we are all under attack. The uniformed elites not only have barbecues at their dachas, but they also get a luxury restaurant to themselves," writes blogger Anastasia Kaixarova.

A few months ago, the Russian president ordered that the protection of his generals in the capital be strengthened because Ukrainian special services were managing to hit them too easily. In June, a colonel died when his car exploded on the outskirts of Moscow, while in February the deputy head of Russian military intelligence survived an assassination attempt by a courier who had managed to access his home's gate. The last general to die in the city from a Ukrainian bomb was Fanil Sarvarov, in December of last year. In any case, Saturday's attack is the one that occurred in a more central location, next to the United States embassy.