A media investigation published on April 3, citing two Libyan sources, said that Averyanov was on board the Qendil tanker along with a dozen other Russian intelligence officers and was allegedly killed in a maritime drone attack.
RFI later removed this information and apologized. The publication reports that the investigation did not actually take into account information indicating Averyanov’s presence in Madagascar after the estimated date of his death.
The Chairman of the National Assembly of Madagascar confirmed that on December 20, 2025, the Russian delegation that arrived in his country was led by this general.
Later, according to Russian media, in February Averyanov met with the delegation of Madagascar in Moscow. Investigative resource All Eyes on Wagner published a photo in X showing him “with a delegation from Madagascar in February 2026,” as stated in the caption.
Investigator Hristo Grozev also wrote that information about Averyanov’s death does not correspond to reality.
This is a totally fake story, @RFI. Averyanov is very much alive, and the only sourcing for this false rumor is a discredited telegram account that posted it nearly three months ago. https://t.co/hsfjqJbtKp
— Christo Grozev (@christogrozev) April 3, 2026
Context
Media, including The New York Times and The Insider, have written repeatedly, that the GRU has a secret unit for sabotage operations in Europe – military unit 29155. The headquarters of the unit is located in Moscow, its commander is Averyanov. Western intelligence agencies believe that the unit specializes in data collection, assassinations, sabotage and bombings.
According to The Insider, Averyanov headed the unit in 2008, after which he recruited several dozen young GRU and special forces officers into it. The group, which grew to about 70 people, was responsible for sabotage operations abroad. It is believed that it has been conducting active operations in Europe since 2011.
According to media reports, it is this unit that is associated with numerous murders, including poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia in Salisbury in 2018.
The same unit appears in investigations bombing of an ammunition depot in the Czech Vrbetice in 2014, assassination attempt for the murder of a Bulgarian arms dealer in 2015, the destabilization campaign in Moldova, the failed coup attempt in Montenegro in 2016, as well as attacks with microwave (or other) weapons on American diplomats around the world (the so-called Havana syndrome).
Recently, Averyanov has held the position of deputy chief of the GRU and oversees the African direction.
