Mysterious deaths of chieftains in Russian-backed “republics” since 2015 in a nutshell – #Infographic

Since 2015, more than a half-score of the "Donbas warlords" and other "leaders" were killed or died under mysterious circumstances. Here is a baker's dozen of the most prominent deaths:

	Date	Position	Name	Details
1	2015-01-01	Head of Batman gang	Aleksandr Bednov	Ambushed and killed with the RPO-A Shmel grenade launcher
2	2015-01-23	'Mayor' of occupied Pervomaysk	Yevgeny Ishchenko	Shot dead in Pervomaysk
3	2015-05-23	Warlord of Alchevsk, head of Prizrak gang	Aleksey Mozgovoy	Wounded by a bomb then finished off with a machine gun
4	2015-12-12	Cossack warlord of Kadiivka	Pavel 'Batya' Dryomov	Killed by a car bomb
5	2016-09-19	Head of Oplot gang	Yevgeny Zhilin	Shot dead in a restaurant in Moscow oblast, Russia
6	2016-09-24	Head of the "cabinet of ministers of LNR"	Gennady Tsypkalov	"Committed suicide" in detention for "plotting a coup" in Luhansk
7	2016-10-02	Platoon commander, smuggler	Armen "Baggi" Bagiryan	Shot dead with an assault rifle
8	2016-10-16	Leader of Sparta gang	Arsen 'Motorola' Pavlov	Killed by a bomb explosion in his apartment's elevator
9	2016-12-27	"Minister of agriculture of LNR"	Sergey Litvin	Died in Luhansk
10	2017-01-27	"First head of LNR"	Valery Bolotov	Died in Moscow, poisoning is suspected
11	2017-02-04	Military chief of 'LNR'	Oleg Anashchenko	Died in a car blast in Luhansk
12	2017-02-08	'Commander' of Somali gang	Mikhail 'Givi' Tolstykh	Killed with the Shmel rocket launcher in Makiivka
13	2017‑03‑12	One of "DNR founders"	Vladimir Makovich	Died with a "brain tumor" in Donetsk

There are four main theories explaining the mysterious deaths of Russian warlords. (1) As a rule, "LDNR authorities" blame Ukrainian DRGs (military subversive groups) or SBU agents for assassinations. This version is voiced on the Russian TV channels as only possible every time a warlord is killed. Ukrainian officials usually deny responsibility. (2) Donbas pro-Ukrainian guerrillas taking revenge can be behind the killings. (3) Infighting among the "elite" of "republics" may be the reason for murders as they seek to augment their power. (4) Russian security services may dispose of the leaders going out of their control, who may become unwanted witnesses for Russia in future. Our next poll is about this string of deaths in the occupied territories the question is: Who is killing separatists in the Donbas? [socialpoll id="2426876"] Update: Poll results. Read more:

• Another warlord killed: Mystery grows as series of deaths in Russian-backed enclaves continues
• “LNR” separatist field commander killed in car explosion: three versions why
• Donbas warlord Motorola killed in Donetsk
• Alleged “military coup” followed by purge of “LNR” chieftains
• The attempted assassination of the “Luhansk People’s Republic” leader
• Major militant warlord killed in a coup near Luhansk

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Previous poll result:  Unfortunately, our readers who voted on Twitter and Opinionstage didn't guess what Russia would do, Russia didn't boycott Eurovision and announced its entry.