The gangland-style killing of Boris Nemtsov on Saturday marked the worrying return of political assassination to Russia’s internal power games. While Russia has remained one of the most dangerous places to be a government opponent or outspoken journalist, murders of opposition members have actually tapered off in recent years.
Nemtsov was shot four times as he walked on a bridge across the Moskva river, only metres from the Kremlin walls, and just one day before he was due to lead a protest rally against Vladimir Putin.
Muscovites march to commemorate Boris Nemtsov. (REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov.)
For Kremlin critics, the most likely culprits will …read more