Moscow apartment bombings
| Russian apartment bombings | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Location | Buynaksk, Moscow and Volgodonsk |
| Date | 4–16 September 1999 |
| Target | Apartment buildings |
|
Attack type
|
Time bombings, terrorism |
| Weapons | RDX |
| Deaths | 293 |
|
Non-fatal injuries
|
1,000+ |
|
Suspected perpetrators
|
|
The Russian apartment bombings were a series of explosions that hit four apartment blocks in the Russian cities of Buynaksk, Moscow and Volgodonsk in September 1999, killing 293 and injuring more than 1000 people and spreading a wave of fear across the country. The bombings, together with the Dagestan War, led the country into the Second Chechen War. Putin's handling of the crisis boosted his popularity and helped him attain presidency within a few months.
The blasts hit Buynaksk on 4 September, Moscow on 9 and 13 September, and Volgodonsk on 16 September. An explosive device similar to those used in these bombings was found and defused in an apartment block in the Russian city of Ryazan on 22 September. The next day, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin praised the vigilance of the inhabitants of Ryazan and ordered the air bombing of Grozny, which marked the beginning of the Second Chechen War. Thirty-six hours later, three FSB agents who had planted the devices at Ryazan were arrested by the local police. The incident was declared to have been a training exercise and the agents were released on Moscow's orders.
Parliament member Yuri Shchekochikhin filed two motions for a parliamentary investigation of the events, but the motions were rejected by the Russian Duma in March 2000. An independent public commission to investigate the bombings was chaired by Duma deputy Sergei Kovalev. The commission was rendered ineffective because of government refusal to respond to its inquiries. Two key members of the Kovalev Commission, Sergei Yushenkov and Yuri Shchekochikhin, have since died in apparent assassinations. The Commission's lawyer and investigator Mikhail Trepashkin was arrested and served four years in prison for revealing state secrets.
The official Russian investigation of the bombings was completed in 2002 and concluded that all the bombings were organised and led by Achemez Gochiyaev, who remains at large, and ordered by Islamist warlords Ibn Al-Khattab and Abu Omar al-Saif, who have been killed. Five other suspects have been killed and six have been convicted by Russian courts on terrorism-related charges.
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Wikipedia