21:28, 17 October 2006

Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA): the attackers on the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria have ties with foreign special agencies

Arkady Edelev, Deputy Minister of the Russian MIA, declared that Anzor Astemirov, one of the organizers of militants' attack on Nalchik last October, was associated with special services of foreign countries, the RIA "Novosti" reports.

"Such persons like Astemirov are linked with special agencies of the countries, which are nurturing intents to unleash blitzkriegs in South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Transcaucasia, and to escalate armed confrontations in our territory with the aim to organize a crossflow of a part of militants from Iraq into the territory of Russia," Edelev said. In his words, until Astemirov and Mukozhev remain at large, a threat of acts of terror in Kabardino-Balkaria persists.

According to official data, during the attack on Nalchik, the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria, on October 3, 2005, 35 employees of law enforcement bodies and 12 civil citizens were killed, over 100 more were wounded. A total of 94 militants were murdered, 69 were captured alive, and over 20 are in the federal search.