Alexander Kislinsky, a sniper in Russia’s GRU/GU’s 22nd Spetsnaz Brigade operating in Ukraine, has reportedly been killed by Ukrainian forces, per multiple Russian sources newly reported on by Newsweek. Kislinsky was evidently a high-profile figure in his corner of Russia’s forces; his brigade involves fighters of the sort that have “achieved legendary status in the West,” as Business Insider says.
“There has been limited reporting on what Russian special-operations units have done in Ukraine or how they’ve performed, but their missions there may include special reconnaissance, direct-action operations, and unconventional warfare,” Insider added in April. As for Kislinsky — the special operations sniper apparently killed in fighting in Ukraine’s Donetsk region, where Russian personnel are trying to take full control — his body was seemingly recovered and brought back to Russia for burial. “Pro-Russian accounts characterized the senior scout-sniper in Ukraine’s death as that of a “hero” and “a warrior” deserving of “eternal memory,”” Newsweek reported. There has been no acknowledgement from Russian authorities of the scale of the losses they’re widely believed to have sustained during months of fighting in Ukraine.
Per Newsweek, a VK account associated with so-called “special units of Russia” said Kislinsky was buried in his “homeland.” The apparently same account also claimed Kislinsky to have been “a very effective combat unit” and caused “significant damage to the enemy,” although the exact nature of his actions would obviously be difficult to credibly obtain from sources in alignment with the conspiracy-fueled Putin regime. Photographic evidence seems to confirm Kislinsky’s involvement in the war against Ukraine — in images, he’s seen with tanks sporting the “Z” symbolism associated with Russia’s violence in Ukraine. In addition, a photo evidently from last month showing Kislinsky with a pair of fellow snipers was reportedly taken in Ukraine’s Donbas region, which encompasses the Donetsk and Luhansk areas.
Other recent high-profile losses in Ukraine for Russian troops include retired Russian Air Force Major General Kanamat Botashev, who was recently shot down in Ukraine’s Luhansk region, which Russian forces are attempting to also completely seize. Per Ukrainian numbers, Botashev is the 13th Russian general to die amid Putin’s war against Ukraine. As The Daily Beast summarized, the “BBC’s Russian service said it managed to confirm Botashev’s death by speaking with several men who had previously been under his command and stayed in touch with him.” Botashev might have been in Ukraine in association with the Wagner group, a paramilitary organization that’s been tied to the Russian government. Rob Lee, with the Foreign Policy Research Institute, said in reference to Botashev it “appears he was flying for Wagner.”
The sniper's name was Alexander Kislinsky. 5/https://t.co/4Mi9R7fBWThttps://t.co/GN8quiwWCM pic.twitter.com/ZE0dCUkXdb
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) May 31, 2022
