Another explosion in occupied Luhansk seriously injures local ‘interior minister’

The blast reportedly occurred on Demekhina Street in the premises of the Barbershop beauty salon, next to the Russian-controlled television and radio company.

Leonid Pasechnik, the head of the Luhansk puppet authority, confirmed that there were casualties as a result of the explosion.

Russian propaganda outlet RIA Novosti also confirmed this information, with reference to their own sources.

Later, Russian state-owned news agency TASS reported with reference to “law enforcement agencies” that Kornet was in intensive care with severe injuries.

The BBC’s Russian service calls Kornet “one of the most influential security officials in the occupied Donbas.”Kornet worked as a criminal investigator at Ukraine’s Interior Ministry until2014.

Later, he joined Russian occupying forces, heading the so-called “interior ministry” in occupied Luhansk.

In November 2017, the then head of the Luhansk puppet authority, Igor Plotnitsky, decided to dismiss Kornet, but the latter refused to resign. The next day, armed forces loyal to Kornet seized administrative buildings. After that, Plotnitsky left for Moscow and “retired.”