| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caucasus |
| Russers have hostage conversations on tape... |
| 2002-10-31 |
| A Kremlin spokesman said Thursday the leader of the Chechen hostage-takers, Movsar Barayev, was heard on intercepted telephone conversations saying he acted on orders from Basayev, who in turn was carrying out an order from separatist president Aslan Maskhadov. At a news conference Thursday, officials played tapes of conversations between the hostage-takers and their contacts outside the theater. In one of the Chechen-language calls, translated into Russian, a voice identified as the attackers' leader, Movsar Barayev, said that "Shamil," meaning Basayev, was present during preparations for the hostage-taking. "Shamil was acting on Aslan's instructions," the voice said. Toldja they'd have those tapes. They're no longer just making the charges with them, they're proving their point. You can't argue with the gunny's voice on tape, and it'll take awhile to explain it away. A "smoking gun" seems kind of redundant in this situation, but that's what it is. "There was other clear evidence that Mr. Maskhadov was fully aware of the developments and the people in the hall acted with his knowledge," Kremlin spokesman Sergei Yastrzhembsky said. Moscow has sought to erase any distinction drawn by foreign governments between rebel warlords such as Basayev and those who also serve as political representatives, including Maskhadov and his aides. The tapes pretty well take care of that, don't they? Russia will ask Qatar to extradite another top Chechen political representative, Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, Yastrzhembsky said. Hope they get him... He also criticized Turkey for allegedly allowing funds for the Chechen rebels to be raised on its territory. Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit denied Thursday that Chechen groups in his country had links to the hostage crisis. "There's definitely no connection with Turkey," Ecevit told reporters, adding that Turkish intelligence agencies were cooperating with Russian authorities. If they're letting the Russers in, they should soon find out for sure... The alleged evidence against Maskhadov and Zakayev essentially ruled out any peace negotiations over Chechnya, Yastrzhembsky said. "We can see that the image of Maskhadov — even in the eyes of those who pushed Moscow toward negotiations with Maskhadov — has seriously paled," he said. How's the evidence still "alleged" when it was on tape? I guess I don't understand newsroomese... In another intercepted call played at Thursday's news conference, Abu Bakar, earlier identified in media reports as Barayev's deputy, claimed his band had more than 100 accomplices around the Russian capital ready to carry out suicide attacks. Yastrzhembsky said that claim could have been false and intended to frighten authorities because hostage-takers were aware their calls were being monitored. On the other hand, there was the guy they caught with the mercury today... Moscow Prosecutor Mikhail Avdyukov said some of the 41 hostage-takers whose bodies were recovered from the scene were foreigners from former Soviet republics and beyond. He said two surviving hostage-takers, both Russian citizens, were in custody. They should be just as unhappy as can be right about now. The thought makes me positively gleeful... Yastrzhembsky said the attackers had connections with the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which is on the U.S. State Department's list of terrorist groups. And they did have direct links with al-Qaeda, by the way. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |