Sergei Karpukhin/Reuters
Boris Nemtsov, a former Russian prime minister and vocal critic of Vladimir Putin, was shot dead on a Moscow street corner Friday evening. One Russian media outlet said Nemtsov was shot four times in the back by an unidentified drive-by attacker. Nemtsov was once considered next in line to succeed Boris Yeltsin, Russia’s first post-Soviet president, before Putin took office in 2000. Police said they are investigating Nemtsov's murder. Just yesterday, Nemstsov was quoted by the Financial Times as saying, “The task is to organise a real opposition again.”
In his last tweet, Nemtsov said: "If you support stopping Russia's war with Ukraine, if you support stopping Putin's agression, come to the Spring March in Maryino on 1 March." The Kremlin reports that Putin, who Nemtsov feared would have him killed due to his opposition to the war in Ukraine, condemns the murder and has ordered an investigation into the matter. Putin will oversee the investigation.