M A I N   N E W S

2 female bombers hit Moscow metro, kill 38
Hand of Islamic insurgents suspected

Moscow, March 29
Two female suicide bombers killed at least 38 persons on packed Moscow metro trains on Monday even as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin declared that “terrorists behind the attack will be destroyed”.

The first blast tore through the second carriage of a metro train just before 8 am as it stood at the Lubyanka station, close to the headquarters of Russia's main domestic Federal Security Service (FSB). It killed at least 23 persons.

About 40 minutes later, another blast in the second or third carriage of a train waiting at the Park Kultury metro station, opposite Gorky Park, killed 12 to 14 more persons, an emergencies ministry spokeswoman said by telephone.

Witnesses described morning rush-hour panic at two central Moscow stations, with commuters falling over each other in dense smoke and dust as they tried to escape the worst attack on the Russian capital in six years. Sixty-five others were injured.

“A crime that is terrible in its consequences and heinous in its manner has been committed,” Putin said, before breaking off a visit to Siberia to handle the aftermath of the attack.

FSB chief Alexander Bortnikov said the bombs were filled with bolts and iron rods. He linked the attacks to the North Caucasus, where Moscow faces a growing threat from Islamist insurgents who have threatened to hit Russian cities and economic targets. Officials said the death toll could rise, with about 30 persons badly injured.

Meanwhile, the Russian rouble fell sharply on the bombings, but later regained ground, with traders arguing the actions were unlikely to undermine the basic stability of the currency.

Notably, Rebel leader Doku Umarov, who is fighting for an Islamic emirate embracing the whole region, vowed last month to take the war to Russian cities. — Reuters

India condemns Moscow blasts
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 29
India today strongly condemned the twin blasts that rocked Moscow’s metro rail network with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assuring Russian President Dmitry Medvedev of New Delhi’s full support in combating the forces of violence and terrorism.

“’It is with great anguish that I have learnt of the bomb blasts in Moscow, which have led to the loss of so many innocent lives. This is most tragic and horrific act of violence,’’ the PM said in a letter to Medvedev.

Condemning the loss of lives in the suicide attacks, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna, who was in Bangalore, offered his sympathies to the families of those killed in the blasts.