A young man connected with the Islamist insurgency in the Russian North Caucasus blew himself up in Grozny, the capital of Chechnya on Sunday afternoon killing five policemen and injuring many others.The suicide bomber has been identified as a local resident, Opti Mudarov, 19.
"The man has been identified as a resident of the Staropromyslovsky district who has been missing since he left home two months ago," a spokesman for the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation told Itar-Tass.
The incident took place at about 17:00 Moscow time near a concert hall in central Grozny. "Police officers who were on duty at walk-through metal detectors saw a suspicious-looking young man, who activated an unidentified explosive device when police stopped him to check his documents," the spokesman said.
The incident has been condemned by the Chechen President Ramazan Kadyrov. Kadyrov told journalists on Sunday that police officers have lost their lives to prevent a terrorist attack that could lead to dozens of casualties among the civilians celebrating the City Day in Grozny, the republic's capital. Kadyrov insisted that the incident was an isolated event. "There is peace, stability and prosperity in the republic. We are confident about the future," Kadyrov stressed. He said "terrorists and Wahhabis understand only the language of force and are to be eliminated, wherever they try to lift up their heads.
In a separate incident, two gunmen connected with the Islamist group, "Caucasus Emirate" were killed by security forces in another North Caucasus Republic, Kabadino-Balkaria. The incident happened near the village of Psykhurei in the Baksan district of Kabardino-Balkaria. A spokesman for the security forces said that when challenged the gunmen refused to surrender arms and opened gunfire at the police and security officers and used grenades. "The two were killed in an exchange of fire," the spokesman said.
According to the spokesman, one of the gunmen was identified as Zaurbek Orshokdugov, born in 1984, who was a leader of an illegal armed group on the federal wanted list.
Commonspace.eu political editor said in a comment "the incidents are a sign of the continued volatility of the situation in the North Caucasus where Russia has been battling with Islamist inspired insurgents for more than two decades. Despite all attempts to use both incentive4s and repression to eliminate the threat a constant flow of young people depart every month from their villages and families into the forests and mountains of the North Caucasus to join the jihadist cause. On many occasions Russian federal leaders, and their counterparts in the North caucasus Republics, have claimed that they have wiped out the insurgency, only to be proven wrong shortly after. Many consider the situation impossible to resolve as long as the region remains impoverished, and offering few opportunities for young people. Many also consider that the heavy handed methods of the security forces are counter-productive, creating a constant wave of marthyrs and cause for revenge. The incidents on Sunday break the uneasy peace that had lasted throughout the summer. Whilst the Chechen President calls it an isolated incident, it may also be the begining of a new wave of violence in this troubled region of Russia."
source commonspace.eu with reporting from Itar-Tass News Agency.
Photo: The Concert Hall in the Chechen capital Grozny shortly after a sucide bomber blew himself up on Sunday, 5 October 2014.
