Russia detains Uzbek man over general's killing in Moscow

Russia's security service says a 29-year-old man from Uzbekistan has been detained over the killing of senior general Igor Kirillov and his assistant in Moscow.

Lt Gen Igor Kirillov, head of the Radiation, Chemical and Biological Protection Forces, was outside a residential block early on Tuesday when an explosive device hidden in a scooter was detonated remotely.

The Russian security service said the unnamed suspect was recruited by Ukrainian intelligence, according to state media agencies.

The Ukrainian source said Kirillov - who was Russia's chemical weapons chief - was "a legitimate target" and alleged he had carried out war crimes.

On Monday, the day before the killing, Ukraine charged Kirillov, 54, in absentia, saying he was "responsible for the mass use of banned chemical weapons". Russia denies the allegations.

A Kremlin spokesman said Russian President Vladimir Putin "expresses deep condolences" over Kirillov's death, Russian news agency Tass reported.

The Russian Federal Security Service's (FSB) public relations centre said on Wednesday the detained 29-year-old was "suspected of committing a terrorist act".

A statement said that during "interrogation he explained that he was recruited by the Ukrainian special services".

In a video published by the FSB, the purported suspect - a dark-haired man wearing handcuffs with what appears to be a visible rip in his coat - speaks directly to the camera.

He appears to say he was offered a reward of $100,000 and permission to move to the European Union in exchange for killing Kirillov.

The FSB added that on Ukraine's instructions, he arrived in Moscow and received a homemade explosive device.

He placed the explosive device on an electric scooter, which he parked at the entrance to the residential building where Kirillov lived, the FSB said.

He then rented a car to monitor Kirillov's residence and installed a camera on the dashboard which livestreamed a video feed to handlers in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the statement added.

When they saw Kirillov emerge from the house, the suspect was told to press the button and detonate the bomb, the FSB said.

Irina Volk, from Russia's interior ministry, said in a statement on messaging platform Telegram that the suspect had been detained in the village of Chernoye, Balashikha, in the Moscow region, before being "transferred to investigative bodies".