Donbass: "Givi", leader of pro-Russian separatists killed

(To Staff)
08/02/17

The commander "Givi", aka Colonel Mikhail Tolstykh (first on the right in the photo), one of the most charismatic military leaders of the pro-Russian separatists of the Donbass, was killed this morning at 5 Italian hours in an attack on his headquarters in Donetsk .

Local military sources give news, adding that rescue operations following the explosion are still underway.

The death of "Givi", commander of the "Somalia" battalion, is added to that of "Motorola", the battle name of Arsen Pavlov, commander of the "Sparta" battalion, which took place in October 2016. According to sources of the Donbass, it would be part of a large-scale operation of the Kiev intelligence, aimed at eliminating the leaders of separatism in the de facto autonomous regions of eastern Ukraine.

In recent days, military activity has resumed on a large scale right on the Donetsk front. The pro-Russian people accuse the Kiev government of wanting to raise the level of the clash to trigger a reaction from Moscow, which can then be blamed as aggression at the international level. 

Defense Online, present on the front of the Donbass, in the 2015 had dedicated a reportage to the commander Givi.

(photo: Giorgio Bianchi)