War reporter Vladlen Tatarsky killed in St. Petersburg blast

Russian war reporter Vladlen Tatarsky was killed in an explosion at a café in St. Petersburg earlier today. The explosion, caused by an improvised explosive device (IED) with the alleged power of 200 grams of TNT, also injured 25 people (as of the time of writing), 19 of whom have been hospitalized according to the city's governor Alexander Beglov. Witness reports suggest that a woman presented Tatarsky with the IED disguised as a statuette, but a video from the live even hosted by the war blogger shows a man handing him the bust. Another report claims that the bomb exploded while the Tatarsky was still holding it.

Tatarsky, a prominent blogger and war correspondent, had gained fame for his coverage of the situation in Donbass after joining local militias in the wake of the Maidan coup in Kiev in 2014.

The police have not yet commented on the identity of the person who presented the bomb.