Who is Russia's 'butcher of Syria,' now leading the invasion of ...

Not much is known about General Aleksandr Dvornikov personally, but his record leading Russia's military intervention in Syria in 2016 earned him the nickname "the butcher of Syria."Last Sunday, U.S. officials confirmed that General Aleksandr Dvornikov had been appointed to lead Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in a grim omen that it may pursue even more ruthless tactics in the ongoing war.Dvornikov has been called "the butcher of Syria," having lead a brutal campaign in Syria's civil war in 2015.Some of the most devastating attacks on Ukraine have happened under his watch, including in the southern city of Mariupol, which has been all but obliterated, and the missile strike on a train station that killed at least 50 people.In an interview on All Things Considered, Elizabeth Tsurkov, a fellow at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Foreign Policy, broke down Dvornikov's past experience as a military commander and what his new position could mean for the next phase of the war.This interview has been edited for length and clarity.Russia does not release information about the personality or special characteristics of the person, but we can judge him by his actions.Dvornikov oversaw the start of the Russian intervention in the war in Syria from September 2015 until July 2016, when he was replaced by another general.And looking at his record during that time, he oversaw a campaign that combined a great deal of disinformation and lies — presenting the fighting that is happening in Syria as one that is targeting terrorism and ISIS, even though he did not target ISIS.The Russians ended up destroying eastern Aleppo to retake it from the rebels.