«Breaking News» Russian spy chief Igor Korobov dies aged 63 from 'serious illness’ weeks after Putin reprimand

The chief of Russia's spy agency, blamed for the Salisbury Novichok attack, has died - weeks after he collapsed following a dressing down from Vladimir Putin.

General Colonel Igor Korobov had suffered a 'serious and long illness' and died on Wednesday, the Russian Defence Ministry told the state-backed Tass news agency. 

The 63-year-old was hailed as a 'true son of Russia' and had led the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces - also known as the GRU - for several years. 

Col Korobov is believed to have spearheaded the botched assassination attempt on Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia earlier this year while there have been claims the GRU was linked to the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17.

Russian sources said he was left physically shaking last month after being severely reprimanded by Vladimir Putin over the bungled poisoning.

Another meeting at the Russian defence ministry – responsible for the GRU – heard leaders furiously condemn the 'morons' behind operations in Britain. They were denounced for their 'deep incompetence' and 'infinite carelessness'.  

Last month Korobov was said to have been in 'sudden ill health' after a dressing down from Vladimir Putin for his response to the Salisbury spy poisoning 

The 63-year-old reportedly emerged shaken and later collapsed at his home after his confrontation with the furious Russian president.

The United States and its allies have accused the GRU of hacking the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, orchestrating the March nerve agent attack on a Russian ex-spy in Britain, and disrupting anti-doping efforts in world sports. 

Russian authorities have rejected the accusations, calling them part of a Western smear campaign. 

Igor Korobov served as the Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation having earlier had an illustrious career in the military. 

A former Soviet air force pilot, Mr Korobov entered the world of espionage in 1980 after graduating from the defence ministry's military academy in Moscow.

He then moved swiftly through the ranks of Russia's spy agencies, rising to second-in-command of GRU before being appointed its head in January 2016.

Among his roles, Korobov became the agency's chief of strategic intelligence, a job which entailed collecting information on military threats to Russia and handling Russian spies across the globe. 

Korobov was reportedly blamed for the response to the deaths of Sergey Skripal and his daughter Yulia who were poisoned by the chemical agent novichok in Salisbury in March

Colonel Korobov was also said to have drawn flak from Russian government officials for his handling of the MH17 downing

During his later career, Korobov was heavily involved in orchestrating the operations of GRU special forces officers in Syria.

Despite his acclaim as an intelligence star, little is known about Korobov's personal life other than that he is married with two daughters.  

Mr Korobov was sanctioned by the United States in December 2016 over 'efforts to undermine democracy' by organising hacker attacks ahead of the presidential election that brought Donald Trump to power. Under his leadership, GRU has taken a major role in Russian cyberwarfare.

A statement released by the Russian Defence Ministry on Thursday read: 'The bright memory of a wonderful person, a true son of Russia, patriot of the Fatherland, Colonel-General Igor V. Korobov will forever remain in our hearts.

'We express our condolences to the relatives and friends of the deceased.'

Igor Sergun (left), the predecessor of Korobov (right), died in suspicious circumstances in January 2016

Korobov's predecessor Igor Sergun died suddenly back in January 2016 with many Russian news outlets saying the 'circumstances surrounding his death were not clear'.

Two days after Sergun's passing Russian tabloid newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda claimed he had died from a heart attack in Moscow.  

But the theory was soon blasted by US based global intelligence company Stratfor who alleged he had died on New Years Day in Lebanon. 

Two months later, Lebanese newspaper Al Akhbar alleged Sergun was killed on a visit to Beirut in a 'complicated secret mission' carried out by unnamed Arab and Middle Eastern intelligence agencies.

However, the Kremlin stringently denied the allegations.  

Igor Korobov: The scandals during his time as GRU chief

Colonel-General Igor Korobov took over as top dog at the GRU in January 2016 after the sudden death of his predecessor Igor Sergun.

In his two-years in charge, and up until his recent death, Korobov presided over one of the most turbulent periods for Russian intelligence since the end of the Cold War.

MH17 linked to GRU

The GRU was accused of downing the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014.

An open-source investigative team called Bellingcat has linked the plane crash with a GRU officer.

2016 US election

In July this year, US Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted 12 GRU officers, accusing them of interfering in the 2016 US presidential election by hacking into the Clinton campaign.

Both Russia and Wikileaks have denied the accusations with Putin firmly denying it at a joint press conference with Trump 

Skripal poisoning

Two GRU agents were identified as having carried out the attempted assassination of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury earlier this year.

Their poisoning in March in the sleepy Wiltshire town drew international condemnation and caused widespread sanctions to be imposed on Russia.

GRU in Holland  

Last month, it was revealed that GRU spies were thrown out of Holland in April after being caught trying to hack into the global chemical weapons watchdog OPCW, which was probing the Salisbury nerve agent attack.

Russian journalist Sergey Kanev, who has been close to revelations on the identities of the GRU agents sent to Britain and Holland said after the expose he believed it was the final straw for Korobov.

'It is quite likely Korobov will be fired before the end of this year and that Leningrad (St Peterbsurg) born General Sergey Gizunov will take his post,' Kanev said last month. 

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Main photo article The chief of Russia’s spy agency, blamed for the Salisbury Novichok attack, has died – weeks after he collapsed following a dressing down from Vladimir Putin.
General Colonel Igor Korobov had suffered a ‘serious and long illness’ and died on Wednesday, the Russian Defence ...

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