One of Vladimir Putin’s foes has been found dead in Turkey where he had been living in exile under a different name.

Abakar Abakarov, who ran the Telegram channel ‘Morning Dagestan’, suffered multiple stab wounds, but the exact circumstances surrounding his killing have not yet been disclosed.

A cleaner discovered his body in a pool of blood at a rented villa in Istanbul on Friday after he has been missing for more than a week.

The 49-year-old had been living under an assumed name, while trying to flee Russian hitmen, local media has reported.

Abakarov was put on Russia’s international wanted list after being accused of inciting anti-Kremlin riots in Dagestan through his channel.

He fled the country after the unrest at Makhachkala International Airport in 2023, which saw an antisemitic mob storm the airport.

Hundreds of anti-Israel protesters arrived at the airport as a plane from Tel Aviv landed.

The unrest happened just three weeks after the Hamas massacre on Israel on October 7.

More than 20 people were injured during the clashes, including nine police officers.

Shortly before the attack, the Telegram channel had broadcast antisemitic slogans and had called for the expulsion of alleged ‘refugees from Israel’.

At the time, Putin said: ‘The events in Makhachkala were inspired, including through social networks, partially from the territory of Ukraine, by the hands of the  Western intelligence agencies.’

Earlier, Turkish newspaper Yenisafak reported that the body of a murdered man was found in an Istanbul villa on October 7.

The man had reportedly checked in on October 6 and received a guest the following day, who left with two bags.

The victim had no identification, but police reported that he was a citizen of another country.

The Turkish authorities launched an investigation but have not commented on the case. 

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‘Have you seen these men?’

Missing posters would not go amiss in Istanbul where delegations from Ukraine, Russia and America are gathering today for negotiations to end the war.

Two chairs remain empty as Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump chose to opt out of the diplomatic stage.

Volodymyr Zelensky challenged his Russian counterpart to negotiate in-person – but the chances were slim.

It is a stark reminder of his continued distancing from meaningful talksand the deadlock that shows no sign of loosening.

Ukraine’s president will meet Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, but he made it clear that he will not negotiate with anyone except the Russian leader.

Meanwhile, the man who promised to end the full-scale invasion within 24 hours in the White House is also skipping Istanbul.

Trump’s excuse is his ongoing Middle East tour. In Qatar, the Republican was questioned by the media about Putin’s no-show.

In response, he said: ‘Why would he go if I am not going? I did not think it was possible for Putin to go if I’ am not there.’

The US president said he could still travel to Turkey tomorrow if progress is made today.

‘If something happened, I would go on Friday if it was appropriate,’ Trump promised.

This means his absence – or presence, likely to collect accolades – could be used to interpret which way the scale is tipping.

‘We can help the world psychologically. So we think we are going to do well with Russia-Ukraine,’ he had said earlier.

Trump said a day earlier that he would go to Turkey for the talks if Putin did show up.

There are fears the negotiations will again fall through if both leaders are not present.

Instead, Putin is sending a more junior delegation, a calculated move that Estonian foreign minister Margus Tsahkna described as a ‘slap in the face’.

Zelensky also it looks ‘more like a sham level’, adding: ‘We will think about what we will do and what our next steps will be after talking with president Erdogan.

‘We must understand what level the Russian delegation is and what their mandate is, whether they are able to make something themselves, as weall know who in Russia makes the decisions.’

Finnish minister of foreign affairs, Elina Valtonen, who is arriving at a Nato meeting in Antalya, said: ‘When it is about peace, a ceasefire, and how to end the war, we have one chair empty, which is the chair of Vladimir Putin.’

She added: ‘I guess that the world has realised there is only one party not willing to engage in serious peace negotiations and that certainly is Russia.’

Ukraine has declared ‘time and again’ its willingness for a 30-day ceasefire and to end a war ‘it didn’t start in the first place’ but ‘Russia is not available’, she continued.

Details about when and where the Ukrainian delegation might meet their Russian counterparts are still unclear.

It is expected to be clarified after Zelensky and Erdogan meet, according to a Ukrainian official who requested anonymity to speak openly about the plan.

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Buildings shook and people fled onto the streets of Turkey’s biggest city, after three consecutive earthquakes – as strong as 6.2 magnitude – hit before 1pm local time.