Russian special services prepared assassinations of Kasparov, Ponomarev and other opposition figures — El Mundo

According to El Mundo, in the summer of 2026, US authorities warned Kasparov that he had become the target of an assassination attempt prepared by the Kremlin. After this, he was given special protection for the first time since moving to New York in 2013.

Kasparov has been concerned about his safety for more than 20 years. After he left professional chess in 2005 and entered politics, he was accompanied in Russia by eight bodyguards. They not only attended events with him but also brought water and food to ensure Kasparov did not consume products that might have been left unattended.

In 2013, due to threats, Kasparov left Russia. After the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian authorities declared him a "foreign agent," included him in the list of "terrorists and extremists," and in May 2026, placed him on an international wanted list.

The second alleged target was Ilya Ponomarev — the only State Duma deputy who voted against the annexation of Crimea in 2014. He now lives between Kyiv and Washington, supports armed resistance to the Russian authorities and, according to his own words, has already survived five assassination attempts.

According to El Mundo, a person recruited by Russia photographed and videotaped two locations in Washington connected to Ponomarev. He was offered 40 thousand dollars for the assassination. However, the perpetrator only agreed to surveillance and refused to participate in the assassination.

The plotters used a code: preliminary surveillance was called "land measurement," and assassination was called "construction." The person was instructed to film the victim's house from different angles.

In addition to the two confirmed targets in the US, according to sources, there could have been another victim: Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was released in 2024 as part of a large-scale exchange with Russian intelligence agents. Kara-Murza has already been poisoned twice.

The US Department of Justice has accused five individuals, whom it considers members of a Russian special services network, of organizing the plot. Among them are former Russian intelligence officer Yuri Khromeev, his son, FSB officer Kirill Khromeev, as well as two Cuban citizens and a Venezuelan citizen. All of them live in Russia and have not yet been detained.

According to the American prosecutor's office, this network was engaged in finding perpetrators for surveillance of opposition figures, their assassinations, and sabotage in countries supporting Ukraine.

The investigation also uncovered a plan to assassinate another Russian opposition figure in Lithuania. 25 thousand dollars were offered for his elimination. A knife attack or arson using gasoline was considered. The name of this person is not disclosed in American documents.

According to the publication, this could be Ivan Tyutrin, who is in exile in Lithuania and, together with Garry Kasparov, is a co-founder of the "Free Russia Forum" in Vilnius. For part of 2024, he was under protection, which coincided with the period when, according to the US prosecutor's office, the investigated network began to operate. In recent months, the police again warned him that they had discovered he was a target.

Ruslan Gabasov, a Bashkir activist living in exile in Vilnius and advocating for the independence of Bashkortostan, is also on the list of potential targets. In 2025, a surveillance device was found in his car, and Lithuanian law enforcement later uncovered a plot to assassinate him.

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