Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


Russian Security Officials Dismissed Over Airport Bombing

   VOA News  February 08, 2011
   People  lay  flowers as they attend a rally to commemorate the victims
   of last month's deadly suicide bombing at Moscow's Domodedovo airport,
   January 27, 2011

Photo: Reuters

   People  lay  flowers as they attend a rally to commemorate the victims
   of last month's deadly suicide bombing at Moscow's Domodedovo airport,
   January 27, 2011

   Russian  President  Dmitry Medvedev has fired several federal security
   officers  in  connection  with  last month's deadly suicide bombing at
   Moscow's busy Domodedovo airport.
   Presidential  spokeswoman  Natalia  Timakova  said Tuesday the head of
   Russia's  Federal  Security  Service  submitted  a  list  of  names of
   officers responsible for fighting terrorism. The spokeswoman said they
   were dismissed because of errors in their work.
   News  of the dismissals comes one day after an Islamic rebel leader in
   Russia's  restive North Caucasus region claimed he ordered the suicide
   bombing  that killed 36 people. Doku Umarov makes the claim in a video
   posted  Monday  on an Islamic rebel website. The veteran Chechen rebel
   commander  said  the attack was aimed at what he calls the "chauvinist
   regime" of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
   As  the  self-styled "Emir" of the Caucasus, Umarov wants to set up an
   independent  fundamentalist Islamic state in the North Caucasus, which
   includes  the  mainly  Muslim  republics  of  Chechnya, Ingushetia and
   Dagestan.  In another Internet video posted Sunday, Umarov said Moscow
   faces  a  "year  of blood and tears" if it does not give up control of
   the region.
   The  January  24  suicide  bombing  at Domodedovo airport also wounded
   about 150 people.
   Russian  investigators say the bomber was 20-year-old Magomed Yevloyev
   from the republic of Ingushetia. Autopsy results indicate he was under
   the influence of powerful drugs at the time of the attack.
   Medvedev has criticized the lack of effective security at the airport,
   and also fired officials responsible for transportation safety.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.