Explosion in Mozdok Off Screen

 Until recently, military doctors had fewer chances to die in the Chechen war

Fifty-two people died and dozens were killed as a result of the recent terrorist act in the city of Mozdok, North Osetia (not far from Chechnya). A suicide bomber made his way to the territory of the military hospital driving a KamAZ truck full of explosives. However, it seems that the military command has not learnt the lesson again.

Russian flags trimmed with mourning bands were hanging on the building of the central hospital in the North Caucasus on Monday. People were bidding farewell to Mikhail Orlov. The young man graduated from the Medical University in the city of Rostov and joined the army. Senior Lieutenant Orlov served at the anaesthesiology and reanimation department of the military hospital in Rostov, but he was sent to Mozdok to help local doctors.

Until recently, military doctors had fewer chances to die in the Chechen war in comparison with an intelligence officer or a private, for example. After the terrorist act in Mozdok, the military command decided that it was time to establish the all-around defense for hospitals too. The noise of the heavy construction machinery could be heard even during the funeral ceremony at the check point of the Rostov hospital. Workers were building a concrete fence around the hospital. NTV television network made a short news report about it: they showed the central entrance to the building, which was turned to a fortress. However, everything remained the same in the backyard: two elderly men were sitting on stools and watching the road – the road to the hospital. I did not seem to be a suspicious person to them, so they did not stop me.

I learned about the rear entrance to the hospital a year ago. Gunmen downed a Mi-26 helicopter at that time and wounded military men were brought to the hospital from Khankala. I asked the military command for a permission to talk to the soldiers. The command rejected my request, so I had to look for another way to enter the hospital. I thought that I would find a hole in the fence, but I found an entrance that was not protected at all. Luckily, television cameras did not film it, and military officials can proudly report successful security measures.

Anna Lebedeva