The upsurge in antisemitism comes amid the Russian government’s claims that it is fighting neo-Nazis in Ukraine. The unrest also seems to be at odds with Russia’s cult around the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazism in World War II.
The death of an opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin is not something new in history. More than 20 critics and opponents of Putin have been murdered or died in suspicious circumstances since 2000. This is the first time when a member of Putin's inner circle was supposedly killed.