‘Warning to others’: murky death of militia leader as Kremlin reasserts control

Reports that Stanislav Orlov was killed by Moscow security services highlights careful managing of non-state power

Beneath the frescoed ceilings and golden icons of Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, hundreds of men packed tightly into the lower hall as priests intoned prayers for the dead. Dressed in dark winter jackets, the mourners on Monday filled one of Russia's most sacred spaces - a church usually reserved for moments of state ritual and national commemoration. Later, near his grave, the crowd lit bright flares and shouted: One for all, and all for one."

They had gathered to bid farewell to Stanislav Orlov, better known by his callsign Spaniard", the founder of the far-right Espanola unit - a formation of football hooligans and neo-Nazi volunteers who fought as a paramilitary force on Russia's side in Ukraine.