Hero of Russia and commander of the 4th motorized rifle brigade, Major General Anton Grunis, died

Hero of Russia, Hero of Chechnya, commander of the 4th Separate Guards Motorized Rifle Brigade, Major General Anton Grunis, died. This was reported by the community of graduates of the Suvorov Military School.

“We regret to announce the tragic death of our Brother. Anton, a graduate of the Kazan Suvorov Military School, graduate of KPK48, died,” the message says.

Russian general, commander of the Akhmat special forces, Apti Alaudinov, responded to the news of Grunis’ death. He called him one of the most respected special military operations (SVO) generals.

Alaudinov added that Grunis “left as a hero, having fulfilled his sacred duty” and expressed condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.

What is known about the deceased general?

Grunis was a graduate of the Kazan Suvorov Military School. He took part in hostilities in Chechnya, South Ossetia and Syria, said war correspondent Yuri Kotenok. In 2021, Grunis went into reserve, but after the start of the Northern Military District he returned to duty.

In May 2023, he was appointed commander of the 4th separate motorized rifle brigade of the Russian Armed Forces. In this position, he replaced the former commander Vyacheslav Makarov, who died during an attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In July 2025, the brigade was officially given the honorary name “Gvardeiskaya”.

Grunis received the rank of major general on May 2, 2024.

In August 2026, the head of the Russian Ministry of Defense Andrei Belousov awarded Grunis the Gold Star of the Hero of Russia.

Grunis was called the future Marshal of Victory

As reserve colonel, first minister of state security of the Donetsk People's Republic and political observer Andrei Pinchuk said, Grunis took responsibility for the Bakhmut direction at the most critical moment.

The Ukrainian command allegedly counted on the lack of preparedness of the Russian troops in this direction, but the brigade entered the position at night, and in the morning the enemy began retreating from three sides. This was preceded by a strike on the command post, as a result of which the brigade commander Makarov was killed. Grunis took command and worked with virtually no rest for the first four days.

By holding back the counter-offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Grunis won the respect of his colleagues. Pinchuk admitted that Grunis has great prospects as a combat commander. Tsargrad military observer Ilya Golovnev, commenting on Grunis’s work in the Bakhmut direction, said that the brigade commander actually saved the battle for Bakhmut, and noted that he is already being called the future Marshal of Victory.

The battles for Bakhmut ended at the end of May 2023. The battle became one of the most difficult and longest in the entire period of the Northern Military District. The capture of the city was officially announced on May 20.

Putin has repeatedly noted Grunis’s successes

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly noted the successes of the deceased Russian General Grunis. Thus, in May 2023, the head of state spoke about the commander of one of the brigades participating in the Northern Military District. As the Ministry of Defense later reported, it was about Grunis.

The Russian leader then drew attention to the heavy voice of his interlocutor. The brigade commander admitted that he had not slept for four days. This impressed the head of state. “This is combat heroism, and in rather difficult conditions he completed all the tasks facing him and his units,” Putin noted.