Top Russian Spy’s Body Washes Up 'After Swimming Accident’

Telegraph UK ^ | 31 Aug 2010 | Andrew Osborn

[edpc]

The body of one of Russia’s top spies has washed up on the Turkish coast after he disappeared close to a sensitive Russian naval facility in neighbouring Syria.

Gen. Yuri Ivanov, 52, deputy head of GRU, the Russian military's overseas intelligence arm of Russian military, was found dead in mysterious circumstances.

Major-General Yuri Ivanov, 52, was the deputy head of Russia’s foreign military intelligence arm known as GRU which is thought to operate the biggest network of foreign spies out of all of Russia’s clandestine intelligence services.

[Texas Fossil]

the location where he is reported to have disappeared was only about fifty miles from a strategically vital Russian naval facility in the Syrian port of Tartus which is being expanded and upgraded to service and refuel ships from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.

The facility is Russia’s only foothold in the Mediterranean Sea, and Mossad, Israel’s national intelligence agency, is know to be concerned that Moscow will use the upgraded facility as a base for spy ships and electronic espionage directed at the Middle East. The port is also close to the Turkish port of Ceyhan, a terminal for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline which is seen as a lifeline for Georgia, against whom Russia fought a short war in 2008.

For whatever reason he was there, it must have been pretty important to task so high ranking a GRU officer. Syria is a very dangerous place. In this case fatal, no one believes the swimming accident explanation.

[cricket]

Whatever the truth of ‘his’ trip; we will never know. Don’t even trust the mention of Mossad in this story per MO for ‘distraction’ when offering an explantion. But again; ‘who knows’; those who do, will not be talking.

[LucyT]

~Ping~

The body of one of Russia’s top spies has washed up on the Turkish coast after he disappeared close to a sensitive Russian naval facility in neighbouring Syria.

[MichaelP]

Putin ain't a hard man to track... He leaves dead men wherever he goes! (My apologies to Clint in Josey Wales)

Mike

[Gargantua]

No biggee there, right? I mean, everybody knows Russians just can't swim. It has something to do with their cellular density, or their average blood-alchohol levels... the second they hit the water, they just sink like a martini olive.

Or, wait a minute... was that Latvians...?

8^)

[FreeAtlanta]

for a moment, I hoped it was Vladamir Putin.

[Jonah Hex]

Shades of Lionel "Buster" Crabb?

[Roccus]

More like Colby.

[Walkingfeather]

buster was pureed.

[CAluvdubya]

Just a thought....if he was good good, why does everyone know he was a spy? I thought the idea behind being a good spy is that it’s not advertised. I’m just sayin’....

[CAluvdubya]

good good = so good. it’s early here in CA.

[Never on my watch]

In this case fatal, no one believes the swimming accident explanation.

It's hard to swim with a bullet in the back of your head.

Just speculating...

[rickb308]

“Shades of Lionel “Buster” Crabb?”

More like “What wood doesn’t float?”

Natalie.

[Freeport]

Huuummm... Let's see... A top British agent turns up dead under suspicious circumstances and now a Russian... Tit for tat maybe?

[Caipirabob]

*sigh* Happy retirement... : (

[DUMBGRUNT]

I hoped it was Vladamir Putin.

Jealous for the Russian man of action?

Our Dear Leader is so cerebral and above anything physical.

[BlackVeil]

I thought of that too - the recent death of the British decoding expert. Strange deaths, and they may be linked.