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Putin visits bomb-hit Volgograd
12:01 - 01.01.14
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday made a pre-dawn visit to
the city reeling from two suicide bombings this week, bringing
gestures of sympathy for the victims and questions for the officials
he has ordered to beef up security.
The bombings at the main railway station of Volgograd and on a city
trolleybus killed 34 people and wounded scores, 65 of whom are
hospitalized.
No claim of responsibility has been made for either attack, but they
come a few months after the leader of an Islamic insurgency in
Russia's south called for attacks in the run-up to February's Winter
Olympics in the resort city of Sochi.
"Whatever motivated the criminals' actions, there's no justification
for committing crimes against civilians, especially against women and
children, OK" Putin said, opening a meeting in Volgograd with the
heads of the Federal Security Service and the Interior Ministry.
He said he would ask the two officials in the closed-door session for
details on what measures their agencies are taking to raise security
in the country.
Afterward, Putin placed a bouquet on the pile of flowers, balloons and
other commemorative items that has risen at the site of the trolleybus
bombing, then visited a hospital where some of the wounded are being
treated.
Volgograd, a city of about 1 million, has been under heavy security
since the Sunday and Monday attacks. Police reinforcements and
paramilitary troops were sent into the city.
City authorities canceled public New Year's Eve gatherings and have
closed movie theaters until Thursday.
Olympic organizers have introduced some of the most extensive identity
checks and other security measures ever seen at an international
sporting event. But even if security at the games is tight, the
Volgograd bombings show how public transit in Sochi and sites away
from the sports venues are vulnerable.
Suicide bombings have rocked Russia for years, but the insurgents
seeking to create an Islamic state have largely confined their attacks
to the North Caucasus region in recent years. The blasts in Volgograd
signaled that militants want to show their reach outside their native
region. Volgograd is about 300 kilometers (200 miles) north of the
Caucasus and about 690 kilometers (430 miles) northeast of Sochi.
Armenian News - Tert.am
12:01 - 01.01.14
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday made a pre-dawn visit to
the city reeling from two suicide bombings this week, bringing
gestures of sympathy for the victims and questions for the officials
he has ordered to beef up security.
The bombings at the main railway station of Volgograd and on a city
trolleybus killed 34 people and wounded scores, 65 of whom are
hospitalized.
No claim of responsibility has been made for either attack, but they
come a few months after the leader of an Islamic insurgency in
Russia's south called for attacks in the run-up to February's Winter
Olympics in the resort city of Sochi.
"Whatever motivated the criminals' actions, there's no justification
for committing crimes against civilians, especially against women and
children, OK" Putin said, opening a meeting in Volgograd with the
heads of the Federal Security Service and the Interior Ministry.
He said he would ask the two officials in the closed-door session for
details on what measures their agencies are taking to raise security
in the country.
Afterward, Putin placed a bouquet on the pile of flowers, balloons and
other commemorative items that has risen at the site of the trolleybus
bombing, then visited a hospital where some of the wounded are being
treated.
Volgograd, a city of about 1 million, has been under heavy security
since the Sunday and Monday attacks. Police reinforcements and
paramilitary troops were sent into the city.
City authorities canceled public New Year's Eve gatherings and have
closed movie theaters until Thursday.
Olympic organizers have introduced some of the most extensive identity
checks and other security measures ever seen at an international
sporting event. But even if security at the games is tight, the
Volgograd bombings show how public transit in Sochi and sites away
from the sports venues are vulnerable.
Suicide bombings have rocked Russia for years, but the insurgents
seeking to create an Islamic state have largely confined their attacks
to the North Caucasus region in recent years. The blasts in Volgograd
signaled that militants want to show their reach outside their native
region. Volgograd is about 300 kilometers (200 miles) north of the
Caucasus and about 690 kilometers (430 miles) northeast of Sochi.
Armenian News - Tert.am