Explosion At Moscow Airport Kills 35
Posted January 24, 2011 9:40 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Leaders have condemned the terrorist attack on a Moscow airport and Russian authorities are working to secure other travel hubs after the explosion that killed 35 people and wounded dozens Monday.
Officials believe it was a suicide bomber who detonated a device packed with screws and ball bearings in the international arrivals area at Domodedovo Airport — the busiest of the three commercial airports serving the Russian capital. Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said efforts to identify the bomber are underway.
Two of the 35 people killed in the blast were Britons. Their identities haven’t been released.
President Dmitry Medvedev immediately described the explosion as a terror attack and called for increased security at Moscow’s other airports and travel centres. U.S. President Barack Obama offered assistance following the “outrageous act of terrorism.” Medvedev has postponed his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland where he was scheduled to deliver the opening address.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen tweeted that he was “deeply disturbed” by the attack. “NATO and Russia stand together in the fight against terrorism.”
Security concerns have been raised about Domodedovo Airport before. In 2004 two suicide bombers boarded planes there using tickets purchased illegally from airport employees. The bombers blew themselves up in mid-air, killing all 90 people on both flights.
There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for Monday’s explosion. Chechen militants have taken responsibility for similar attacks, including a double suicide bombing on the Moscow subway last March that killed 40 people.
The aftermath of the blast can be seen in the cell phone video below which was posted on YouTube.
