Russian train bombing tied to terrorism
Source: Agencies |
December 1, 2009, Tuesday
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RUSSIAN police released a composite sketch yesterday of a man thought to be involved in the bombing of a Moscow to St Petersburg train that killed 26 people, and a railroad official suggested the attack had the hallmarks of terrorism by insurgents from volatile North Caucasus.
Authorities say Friday night's derailment of a train speeding from Moscow to St Petersburg was caused by a bomb planted on the tracks. The blast gouged out a 1.5-meter crater and sent the final three carriages of the 14-car Nevsky Express hurtling off the rails. A second explosive device partially detonated at the crash site on Saturday as railway workers were clearing debris.
Terrorism has been a major concern in Russia since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. Chechen rebels have clashed with government forces in two wars and Islamist separatists continue to target law enforcement officials.
A high-level official of the state-run railroad company official suggested militants from North Caucasus were likely behind the attack, citing the second explosion that he said was a hallmark of the insurgents.
"The second explosion, which occurred some time later, is the so-called double-blast method, which is carried out by North Caucasus sabotage groups," Alexander Bobreshov, a vice-president of Russian Railways, said on Ekho Moskvy radio.
Many police in the North Caucasus have been killed in blasts that have ripped through the site of an initial explosion after they had arrived to investigate.
The Moscow St Petersburg train line is very popular with business executives and government officials.
Health Minister Tatyana Golikova said yesterday a woman injured in the derailment died late on Sunday in a Moscow clinic, bringing the death toll to 26, three Russian news agencies reported. Dozens of people were treated at hospitals for their wounds, some flown into Moscow and St Petersburg by helicopter.
Russia mourned the train victims yesterday.
No suspects or motive have been named, but police released a computerized sketch yesterday of a possible suspect. It was not clear, however, if the black-and-white composite depicted the man whom Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev had spoken of earlier, a man about 40 years old with red hair.
Authorities say Friday night's derailment of a train speeding from Moscow to St Petersburg was caused by a bomb planted on the tracks. The blast gouged out a 1.5-meter crater and sent the final three carriages of the 14-car Nevsky Express hurtling off the rails. A second explosive device partially detonated at the crash site on Saturday as railway workers were clearing debris.
Terrorism has been a major concern in Russia since the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. Chechen rebels have clashed with government forces in two wars and Islamist separatists continue to target law enforcement officials.
A high-level official of the state-run railroad company official suggested militants from North Caucasus were likely behind the attack, citing the second explosion that he said was a hallmark of the insurgents.
"The second explosion, which occurred some time later, is the so-called double-blast method, which is carried out by North Caucasus sabotage groups," Alexander Bobreshov, a vice-president of Russian Railways, said on Ekho Moskvy radio.
Many police in the North Caucasus have been killed in blasts that have ripped through the site of an initial explosion after they had arrived to investigate.
The Moscow St Petersburg train line is very popular with business executives and government officials.
Health Minister Tatyana Golikova said yesterday a woman injured in the derailment died late on Sunday in a Moscow clinic, bringing the death toll to 26, three Russian news agencies reported. Dozens of people were treated at hospitals for their wounds, some flown into Moscow and St Petersburg by helicopter.
Russia mourned the train victims yesterday.
No suspects or motive have been named, but police released a computerized sketch yesterday of a possible suspect. It was not clear, however, if the black-and-white composite depicted the man whom Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev had spoken of earlier, a man about 40 years old with red hair.
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