1996 Kaspiysk bombing

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1996 Kaspiysk bombing
Part of the Chechen–Russian conflict
Russia Dagestan location map.svg
Red pog.svg
1996 Kaspiysk bombing (Republic of Dagestan)
Location Kaspiysk, Dagestan, Russia
Coordinates 42°53′45.32″N47°37′39.77″E / 42.8959222°N 47.6277139°E / 42.8959222; 47.6277139
DateNovember 16, 1996
Deaths68
PerpetratorsChechen rebels

The 1996 Kaspiysk bombing occurred on 16 November 1996 when Chechen terrorists bombed an apartment building in Kaspiysk, Dagestan, killing 68 people.

Contents

Background

The apartment had been built in 1991, and at the time of the bombing around 200 people lived in the housing. [1] It had been one of the buildings of the Volna boarding house until 1992-1993 when the Caspian border detachment was created and the housing was transferred to city authorities. [1]

Bombing

The explosion occurred at around 2 a.m. UTC+03:00 at house No. 58 on Lenin Street in the basement. [1] The bombing destroyed the entire nine-story apartment. [2]

Local emergency services arrived at 2:30 a.m. to rescue people until the arrival of a task force and rescuers of the Russian Emergencies Ministry, additional specialists also arrived on on 19 November along with professional rescuers from the Central Airmobile Rescue Squad and the Special Purpose Center in Moscow. [3]

In total, 68 people died, including 21 children. [4] The target of the explosion is suspected to be against Russian Border Guard officers who were living inside with their families. [4] [5] [6]

Investigation

FSB Director Nikolay Kovalyov stated soon after that a suspect was detained and the identities of two accomplices were known, which was confirmed by the Transcaucasian Border District. [1] Ivan Rybkin stated that the people responsible for the attack were opponents of the Chechen peace process, a claim reiterated by the Chechen coalition government. [7] It was also estimated that the explosive device had the power of 30-150 kg of TNT. [1] The names of the suspects were never released, and in November 2003 the FSB announced the case was suspended

Response

Boris Yeltsin declared a national day of mourning in response to the attack. [8] Two days after the attack Viktor Chernomyrdin visited Kaspiysk. [1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Трагедия в Каспийске". Kommersant (in Russian). 19 November 1996. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
  2. "1996 Global Terrorism: Europe and Eurasia Overview". irp.fas.org. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  3. "РОССИЯ В БОРЬБЕ С КАТАСТРОФАМИ" (PDF). www.kbzhd.ru. p. 175. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Russia detains three bombing suspects". UPI. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  5. "Deadly blast hits Russian parade". 9 May 2002. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  6. "Terrorist attacks in Russia". www.johnstonsarchive.net. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  7. "Attentat meurtrier contre des militaires - Le Télégramme". Le Telegramme. 18 November 1996. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
  8. "Suspect Held in Bombing of Apartments in South Russia". Los Angeles Times. 19 November 1996. Retrieved 1 May 2022.