Moscow Car Blast Reportedly Injures Former Azarov Spokesman

A car exploded in southern Moscow on Friday morning, Nov. 13, reportedly seriously injuring a former spokesman for Ukraine’s ex-Prime Minister Mykola Azarov.Russian media identified the driver as Sergei Zavorotny, a Russian writer and former employee of Russia’s State Duma. His identity and condition were not immediately independently confirmed.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.According to Russian media, the Toyota Fortuner exploded on Kirovogradskaya Street near a residential building, shortly after leaving a courtyard.Preliminary reports said an improvised explosive device had been placed beneath the driver’s seat and detonated several minutes after the vehicle began moving. The blast reportedly threw the driver onto the roadway.Zavorotny survived but was seriously injured. Shot said he suffered shrapnel wounds to his chest and back, as well as severe leg injuries, and was being taken to a hospital.Russia’s Investigative Committee said it had opened a criminal case over the explosion, but its statement did not identify the driver.Zavorotny previously worked in the Russian parliament before becoming a spokesman for Azarov, who served as Ukraine’s prime minister from 2010 to 2014. He also co-authored a book about the fall of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and Russia’s loss of influence in Ukraine.On Thursday morning, a Russian military colonel was killed when an explosive device detonated beneath his car in St. Petersburg. Other Topics of Interest Finland and Norway have moved to block Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing on their soil, citing Moscow’s war against Ukraine and concerns that Russia uses international sports to spread wartime propaganda. The bomb was attached to the underside of the vehicle and detonated remotely as the officer was leaving his courtyard in the city’s Slavyanka neighborhood.The explosion occurred near a Lenta supermarket and a Tatneft gas station on the Kolpinskoye Highway. The officer, a colonel, reportedly served in Russia’s 6th Air Force and Air Defense Army. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.