Image from Butusov's facebook page
Image from Butusov's facebook page
Ukrainian Special Services were involved in the murder of Mikhail Tolstykh, call sign "Givi," commander of the Somali Battalion of the Armed Forces of the Donetsk People's Republic, and the attack was in preparation for two years. Such a statement was made by the Ukrainian journalist, Yuri Butusov, the editor-in-chief of a propaganda publication.

"The operation was planned and prepared over two years," he wrote on his Facebook page.

He noted that Givi was on top of the "retaliation list" of the special services of Ukraine. However, according to Butusov, it was difficult to approach him because of the security measures that he was taking.

The propagandist also noted that, probably, Givi was killed not with a grenade launcher, according to official data, but with the help of a mine that persons unknown had placed.

"Retribution overtook the Tolstoy directly on the carefully guarded base of "Somalia" in his office. Initially, they talked about a shot from a launcher, but nobody used one. So it is likely that it could have been a mine. Someone installed it, who was led to Givi, who managed to set a mine and leave before the explosion, and activate the bomb at the right time," he wrote.

The Butusov post concludes:
С тех пор, таких крупных акций возмездия такого значения на оккупированных территориях не совершалось.

"No major act of retaliation of such significance has been achieved in the occupied territories since."