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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThis Is The Feared Russia-Born Separatist Who Allegedly Boasted Of Downing An Airplane
Igor Strelkov, the pro-Russian rebel leader who reportedly may have taken credit on social media for shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, is a mysterious figure who casts a frightening shadow as he plays a central role in the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine.
The New York Times described Strelkov as a "shadowy rebel" who wields an "iron fist" in its July 10 report about the rebel leader. He had reportedly ordered the execution of a 30-year-old man for stealing a pair of pants and two shirts from an empty house in a rebel-controlled town. In the execution order, according to the Times, Streklov wrote that crimes committed in the zone of military activity will continue to be punished ruthlessly."
In press reports, which are limited, Strelkov has been described as a devout Russian nationalist with a "messianic" personality. He was born Igor Girkin in 1970 and was raised in Moscow, the Austrailan Broadcasting Company reported.
Strelkov is almost a caricature of the Putin era, one Russia expert, Mark Galeotti, told the Times. He worked in the past at the Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate, according to ABC. The Times reported that he supported a return of the Russian monarchy while he was a student at the Moscow State Institute for History and Archives.
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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/igor-strelkov-ukraine-plane-crash
TwilightGardener
(46,416 posts)hlthe2b
(102,378 posts)too many messianic nuts in the world... Damn, it would seem like we would learn from history, but sadly all too many even LEARN history....
herding cats
(19,568 posts)This part especially.
It used to be a fantasy world for people like him, but now they have a realm for their imaginations," a former adviser to Putin told the New Yorker this week.
Russia disavowing his ties to their intelligence community and even his actual existence altogether seems telling.
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)louis-t
(23,297 posts)he could easily be mistaken for a WWI officer.
GeorgeGist
(25,323 posts)I'm guessing that mano-a-mano he'd smell like Ted Nugent.
Cha
(297,712 posts)Tom Nichols @TheWarRoom_Tom
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One thing to come out of #MH17: no one can pretend anymore that this isn't #Russia's war in #Ukraine. It is. And now we're saying it.
6:14 AM - 18 Jul 2014 86 Retweets 31 favorites
http://theobamadiary.com/2014/07/18/the-kids-state-dinner/