Russian Opposition Leader, Nemtsov Shot Dead In Moscow

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Boris Nemtsov, a sharp critic of President Vladimir Putin and charismatic Russian opposition leader, was gunned down near the Kremlin, just a day before a planned protest against the government. Aljazeera reports:

Nemtsov’s death late on Friday ignited a fury among opposition figures who assailed the Kremlin for creating an atmosphere of intolerance of any dissent and called the killing an assassination. Putin quickly offered his condolences and called the murder a provocation.

Nemtsov, a 55-year-old former deputy prime minister, was working on a report presenting evidence that he believed proved Russia’s direct involvement in the separatist rebellion that has raged in eastern Ukraine since last April. Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of backing the rebels with troops and sophisticated weapons. Moscow denies the accusations.

Putin ordered Russia’s top law enforcement chiefs to personally oversee the probe of Nemtsov’s killing. “Putin noted that this cruel murder has all the makings of a contract hit and is extremely provocative,” presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies.