Dagestan is mourning the victims of the act of terrorism in Kaspiisk today. The number of the killed people reached 39: 13 children, 21 military men, 4 civilians. One hundred and ten people have been hospitalized.
The Russian Federal Security Bureau (FSB) informed, terrorists blew up an antipersonnel mine of targeted action. This is proved with the character of the wounds. According to preliminary information, the capacity of the explosion made up some 3-5 kilos of TNT equivalent. The mine was possibly put right before the beginning (or during) the celebrations, because sappers did not find anything suspicious, when they were examining the territory. Criminal proceedings have already been instituted.
Dagestan’s Council of State held the closed session, which was connected to the tragedy. Director of the Russian FSB, Nikolay Patrushev, presidential envoy in the Southern administrative district, Viktor Kazantsev, representatives of Russia’s Office of the Prosecutor General, Home Ministry took part in the session.
RIA Novosti reported that a group of investigators from the Russian department for the Office of the Prosecutor General in the North Caucasus left for the site of the tragedy, together with the investigating group of the Russian Home Ministry.
President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko presented his condolences to Vladimir Putin and to the chairman of Dagestan's Council of State, Magomedali Magomedov. Lukashenko wrote that the organizers of that horrific act must not get away from retaliation: “Russia may always count for the help of Belarus in the anti-terrorist struggle.” FBS Director, Nikolay Patrushev, is certain that the investigation of the terror act will be successful, “if we all act as quick as possible.”
In the meantime, the special services of Dagestan exposed the name of the person, who could be involved in the explosion in Kaspiisk – this is commander Rapani Khalilov. He was reportedly involved in the decision-making process about dispatching militant groups to Dagestan – the groups, which were dealing with organization of acts of terrorism on the territory of the republic. Echo of Moscow radio station said that Khalilov originates from Dagestan, he is a religious fanatic, he was commanding a group of gunmen in the summer of 1999, when Chechen guerrillas invaded Dagestan.
Khalilov’s participation in the horrific act of terrorism in Kaspiisk will have to be investigated further, of course. If is obvious that the Russian special services have to find a person to blame in order to calm the public opinion down, and this must be done as soon as possible. However, Viktor Kazantsev’s statement looks a bit strange against the background of the tragedy in Kaspiisk. He stated in the interview to NTV that “the executors of the act of terrorism, and those, who ordered it, would be found in the nearest future.”
Sergey Stefanov
PRAVDA.Ru
Translated by Dmitry Sudakov
Yahoo/AP Death toll in Russian bomb blast rises as day of mourning observed in Dagestan
Washington Post Bomb at Parade Near Chechnya Kills 36
Yahoo/Reuters Putin vows to hunt "scum" as 34 die in blast
BBC Explosion in Dagestan town
Yahoo/AP Bush Condemns Deadly Russian Bombing
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