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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Nalchik raid organized by Chechens, aided by foreign intelligence services |
| 2006-02-15 |
| The attack on Kabardino-Balkaria's capital Nalchik was organized by leaders of the criminal underworld including those from Chechnya, with foreign secret services helping them, an official told reporters on Tuesday. The gangsters enjoyed a powerful financial support from foreign secret services. "Natives of Middle East countries were involved in the raid. The gunmen were nurturing plans of further aggravation of the situation in the North Caucasus," said Albert Sizhazhev, deputy head of the department for combating organized crime under Kabardino-Balkaria's Interior Ministry. Three gang leaders were destroyed in the village of Anzorei in January during the investigation into the attack. One of them was a native of Kabardino-Balkaria, the second was a native of Chechnya, while the third was a Turk. The militants carried seven pistols which police identified as stolen from the Nalchik drug control office in December 2004. They also had a satellite orientation system, which law-enforcement authorities used to find a militants' base camp in a wooded area near Nalchik. Of the 200 units of firearms seized from Nalchik attackers, 67 were stolen from the Nalchik office, while another 27 weapons were stolen during the attack on Ingushetia's Interior Ministry, which is another proof of links between gangs of Kabardino-Balkaria and Chechnya, Sizhazhev said. The captured militants said former deputy director of the Institute of Islamic Studies Anzor Astemirov was one of the masterminds behind the Nalchik attack. Head of the department for religions Dzhambulat Gergokov said the criminal underworld of Kabardino-Balkaria was funded through non-governmental organizations, which were operating in Chechnya under the guise of humanitarian bodies. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 "The gangsters enjoyed a powerful financial support from foreign secret services". KGB...FSB...please...do tell |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2006-02-15 13:58 |