Moscow bombing again shatters illusions in Russia
President Dmitry Medvedev had this week been due to enjoy the honour
of delivering the keynote speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos,
persuading investors that Russia is undergoing major change.
Instead, his glitzy trip has been shelved as the Kremlin chief stays
at home to deal with the latest calamity to hit his tragedy-scarred
country, an airport attack that is a brutal reminder of the problems he
faces in reforming Russia.
Passangers queue to pass security checks in Moscow’s Domodedovo
international airport. AFP |
Russia had ended 2010 on a high, revelling in the success of winning
the right to host the 2018 World Cup, a coup which for many represented
its acceptance as a normal, friendly country by the international
community.
But the Moscow Domodedovo airport bombing that killed at least 35
underlined its vulnerability to attacks on key infrastructure used by
thousands of people every day, coming less than a year after deadly
bombings on the metro.
"Given the systemic problems that we have in this country -
corruption, a lack of the rule of law and social contradictions - acts
of terror will continue," said the deputy head of the security committee
of the lower house of parliament, the State Duma, Gennady Gudkov.
"All these problems make extremism and terrorism inevitable and
complicate fighting them. If everything stays as it is, a repeat of the
terror acts is unavoidable," he told Moscow Echo radio.
Analysts lost little time in speculating that the blast was likely
linked to militants in its Northern Caucasus region who have been behind
a string of suicide attacks in Moscow over the last years.
"The attack is almost certainly the work of Islamist militants
operating out of Russia's North Caucasus region," said IHS Jane's
analyst Matthew Clements.
"Domodedovo airport would represent an appealing target for such
militants, as it is Russia's busiest airport, serves international
passengers and has a high density of potential civilian targets," he
added.
Vans of the Russian Emergencies Ministry wait outside Moscow’s
Domodedovo international airport. AFP |
Russia will be welcoming unprecedented numbers of foreigners in the
next years as it gears up for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics and the
2018 World Cup, which will be held in cities from Kaliningrad to the
Urals.
Only the day before, Russia and FIFA had officially signed the
declaration confirming Russia as the official hosts of the 2018 World
Cup.
"Russia will do an excellent job of organizing the World Cup. We
share the vision and mission that football is more than just a game,"
FIFA President Sepp Blatter said after talks with Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin.
The airport is a main entry point into Russia, serving flights from
international airlines like British Airways, Emirates and Lufthansa.
And questions are already being asked about how a suspected suicide
bomber was allowed to so easily enter a packed area of the airport and
set off his charge in a packed arrivals hall.
Medvedev lamented the lax security. "What happened indicates that far
from all the laws that need to be working are being used correctly," he
said at an emergency meeting after the blast.
Members of the Federal Security Service work outside Moscow’s
Domodedovo airport, January 24, 2011. Reuters |
Paramedics evacuate a wounded person from Moscow’s Domodedovo
International Airport. AFP |
It was at Domodedovo airport in August 2004 that two female bombers
managed to pass through a security check and onto two domestic flights,
which they then brought down with the loss of dozens of lives.
"This once again tells us that we are reacting inadequately to the
existing source of risk," the head of the Russsian lower house of
parliament's transport committee Sergei Shishkarev told Moscow Echo
radio.
Pressure could grow on the security services to explain how they
failed to thwart the attack after some reports said there had been
information warning of an attack in the days before the blast. "The
special services had received information that an act of terror would be
carried out at one of the Moscow airports," a security source told the
RIA Novosti news agency.
Dawn |