Blast hits Domodedovo airport in Moscow,23 dead, 100+ injured

[bigworld]

Source: interfax via Reuters

Moscow's Domodedovo airport - the busiest in the Russian capital - has been rocked by an explosion that has reportedly killed at least 23 people.

More than 100 more are thought to have been injured in the blast, which reports suggest may have been the work of a suicide bomber.

Russia's chief investigator said the explosion was the work of terrorists.

The airport is 40km (25 miles) south-east of the city centre, and is popular with foreign workers and tourists.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70N2TQ20110124

---

Updated to reflect new info and casualty figures. Moscow police are also combing other airports and train stations according to a friend.

[MinneapolisMatt]

1. Yikes.

K&R

[dipsydoodle]

2. BBC link - now revised

Moscow's Domodedovo airport - the busiest in the Russian capital - has been rocked by an explosion.

At least 10 people have been killed in the blast and that dozens more are reported to have been injured.

Reports suggest a suicide bomber was behind the blast.

Early local media reports suggested the blast may have hit the baggage reclaim area of the international arrivals hall.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12268662

[brooklynite]

6. International Baggage Claim?

That would suggest it occured inside a security area where non-travellers wouldn't be able to access, unless the assumption was this was caused by somebody with airport employee identification.

[dipsydoodle]

7. Your assumption

sounds to be correct.

[LisaL]

23. I don't think so.

Russia Today article reports it was a suicide bomber among people meeting arriving passengers.

[MilesColtrane]

11. There was a lot of construction going on in the international terminal when I was there last month.

Since all arriving international passengers go through a full body scan, this must have been an airport employee or someone assisted by an airport employee.

Other possibility is that the bomb was stashed in arriving luggage, then retrieved and detonated by someone.

[LisaL]

21. I am really curious as to what TSA in US think they are going to do

if they actually catch someone with a bomb. As the Russian case clearly shows a person doesn't have to get on the plane for the bomb to blow up and cause a lot of damage.

[MilesColtrane]

24. Unless one of the TSA agents is a Federal Air Marshall I imagine they would...

call the real cops to deal with an immanent threat.

[LisaL]

25. And I suppose someone with a bomb will just meekly wait

for the real cops to arrive?

[MilesColtrane]

26. Magic 8 Ball says...

not likely

[LisaL]

22. No. This does not appear to be an area where only screened passengers would be.

Russia Today article says it was a suicide bomber among the people meeting arriving passengers.

[muriel_volestrangler]

29. Indeed: from a spokeswoman:

More detail on where the explosion happened, airport spokeswoman Yelena Galanova telling Interfax: "The explosion occurred in the international arrivals hall in a public area, to which people who are not passengers have free access."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/9372022.stm

In most airports, that can be a very crowded area. The large casualties are not surprising.

[Blue_Tires]

3. One story said it was in the international baggage claim?

[Raschel]

13. They still arent' sure, per CNN

[Brickbat]

4. Damnit.

[brooklynite]

5. from PRAVDA (translated):

At Domodedovo explosion: 10 dead

In the hall of the Moscow international airport Domodedovo flights around 16:30 there was an explosion. This writes Life News Life News.

According to the publication, in the airport building in motion a bomb, a suicide bomber.

It is now known about the 10 dead. The number of wounded is difficult to call. According to some reports, two were injured. "We asked for the possibility of more ambulances," - reported in law enforcement. At the scene left a few teams of the Center for Disaster Medicine.

"I just came out of the airport, there was an explosion - told Life News by phone a Andrew, who flew from the U.S.. - Past us carrying the bloody body. I hastened to get out of there as quickly as possible."

[Raschel]

8. Just said twenty three people dead on my local news...

[Blue_Tires]

9. is it a continuation of this conflict?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Russian_aircraft_bombings

[spinbaby]

10. CNN now reporting 31 dead

Just horrific:cry:

[Raschel]

12. And Moscow, how bold. I think this is a first in Moscow. My heart goes out to the Russian people.

[closeupready]

14. No, there was also the Moscow subway bomb in 2004.

n/t

[nodehopper]

18. there was a suicide bombing in Moscow this past spring, in the subway.

[Raschel]

48. Yep, I stand corrected. This was the second attack at this airport, the theater is in Moscow, the

school massacre was in North Ossetia. Thanks.

[Brickbat]

17. First what, attack?

No. There have been Metro bombs as well as the Nord-Ost siege in 2002.

[nodehopper]

19. this is far from the first. Theater hostage crisis, several subway suicide bombings...

[Old Troop]

40. Nope - subway bombings and the Opera House disaster for a start.

[iamthebandfanman]

15. Hmmm wonder how long itll take before russia kills more

people in Chetznia.

[Name removed]

20. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Alamuti Lotus]

44. Yes, 200,000 Chechens killed wasn't enough the first two times -- Putin has an election coming up

[mahatmakanejeeves]

16. RT - Russia Today

In northern Virginia, they can be seen on over-the-air channel 30-5.

Deadly blast at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport

[harvey007]

27. This is huge

Watch for a total government crackdown on any and all civil liberties Russians have.

[Solly Mack]

28. K&R

:(

[Robb]

30. Still waiting on a responsibility claim.

My money's on Umarov, or whoever the hell is running the Caucasus Emirate at the moment.

[thereismore]

31. This is just what Thom Hartmann was predicting. He said that the scanners are useless

because you don't have to get the bomb on an airplane - all you need is take it to where people line up for scans and blow it up there. It happened.

[enuegii]

32. Exactly.

All the gnad-groping in the world won't help if they're already wired-up and ready to go and there's other people around.

[LisaL]

43. Exactly right.

What exactly are we subjected to the x-rays and "enhanced" pat downs for? How is that going to protect us if terrorists decides to blow bomb in unsecured areas of the airport?
TSA procedures appear to be designed with the idea the only goal terrorist has is to get a bomb (hidden on the body) onto the plane.
Which is clearly not the case, as this Moscow terrorist act demonstrates.

[Electric Monk]

33. kick nt

[brooklynite]

34. UPDATED: Chechens suspected in Moscow airport bombing -- death toll rises to 35, injures dozens more

Source: Salon

The BBC has collected more information about the planning of the attack. Quoting Russian affairs analyst Andrei Ostalski:

The attack was so professionally engineered, it was done in such a brutally efficient way there are not too many groups in Russia that have this kind of practical experience of setting up such devices. So of course everybody is thinking about Chechen groups and insurgents who have been trained to do that kind of thing.

Russian TV's Vesti news program also spoke with an eyewitness, who reported that the bomber shouted "I'll kill you all" before detonating the explosives.

Read more: http://www.salon.com/news/terrorism/index.html?story=/news/feature/2011/01/24/moscow_airport_explosion_deaths

---

BBC is liveblogging their reporting of the story.

[thereismore]

35. Still no factual basis, other than suspicion. nt

[NoodleyAppendage]

36. Remember someone drank radioactive tea and died for revealing that Putin orchestrated terror attacks

Here's a little riveting reading for those who don't remember:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Litvinenko_poisoning

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/news/article-418652/Why-I-believe-Putin-wanted-dead-.html

Particularly pertinent to the current "terror event" is the following paragraph from the Litvinenko case:

"With Yeltsin and his family facing possible criminal prosecution, however, a plan was put into motion to put in place a successor who would guarantee that Yeltsin and his family would be safe from prosecution and the criminal division of property in the country would not be subject to reexamination. For "Operation Successor" to succeed, however, it was necessary to have a massive provocation. In my view, this provocation was the bombing in September, 1999 of the apartment building bombings in Moscow, Buinaksk, and Volgodonsk. In the aftermath of these attacks, which claimed 300 lives, a new war was launched against Chechnya. Putin, the newly appointed prime minister who was put in charge of that war, achieved overnight popularity. Yeltsin resigned early. Putin was elected president and his first act was to guarantee Yeltsin immunity from prosecution."

Given this news tidbit, guess who's up for "re-election" in 2012? I guess Putin continues to borrow well from the PNAC canon.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

38. In 9/11, the first thing people were saying was "Palestinians!"

And they were dead wrong.

[Name removed]

42. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Art_from_Ark]

47. You mean that stock footage

that showed a few people in a one-block area of some Middle Eastern town dancing to something?

[Pterodactyl]

51. Yeah! Palestinians are totally opposed to al Qaeda!

They would never support killing Americans.

[Art_from_Ark]

52. So you're convinced that a generic film clip of a few people

dancing in their town square is proof positive that they're rejoicing over the deaths of thousands of people half a world away?

[Pterodactyl]

53. Uh, no. My message implied exactly the opposite.

Palestinians are totally opposed to terrorism. Arafat himself donated blood to help the 9/11 victims!

[Pterodactyl]

45. Really? Not the way I remeber it.

[Xipe Totec]

37. Update - Moscow airport terror attack kills 35, wounds 180

MOSCOW – A suicide bomber carrying a suitcase walked into Moscow's busiest airport and set off a huge explosion Monday, killing 35 people and wounding 180.

The international arrivals terminal at Domodedovo Airport was engulfed by smoke and splattered with body parts after the mid-afternoon terror attack sprayed shrapnel, screws and ball bearings at passengers and workers. Hundreds of people were in the loosely guarded area at the time.

President Dmitry Medvedev immediately ordered authorities to beef up security at Moscow's two other commercial airports and other key transport facilities. He also canceled plans to fly out Tuesday to Davos, Switzerland, where he was going to promote Russia as a safe, profitable investment haven to world business leaders.

"Attempts were being made to identify" the suspected male suicide bomber, Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said, adding that the attacker appeared to have been wearing the explosives in a belt.

The Interfax news agency said the head of the suspected bomber had been found.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110124/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_airport_blast

[dipsydoodle]

39. It appears possible the bomb was flown in as luggage

and then detonated where the incoming baggage carousels / arrivals lounge is.

That's according to UK tv news.

Witnesses said the suicide bomber walked into the arrivals hall and detonated explosives in a suitcase.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Russia-Bomb-At-Moscows-Domodedovo-Airport-Kills-At-Least-35-People-And-Injures-More/Article/201101415909270?lpos=World_News_Carousel_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15909270_Russia%3A_Bomb_At_Moscows_Domodedovo_Airport_Kills_At_Least_35_People_And_Injures_More

[LisaL]

41. I don't see anywhere in the link where it is suggested that the

bomb was flown as luggage. I also think that would be highly unlikely. If they got luggage bomb onto the plane why not blow it in the air? If he had the bomb in suitcase most likely it's because he brought it with him.

[unkachuck]

46. "...an explosion that has reportedly killed at least 23 people."

....what's happening with world these days, has it gone mad?....c'mon warriors, take your hostilities outside and fight amongst yourselves....

....whether it's the actions of a modern high-tech military or an improvised home-grown terrorist, it's always the innocent that seems to suffer and pay the price....why?

[LeftishBrit]

49. Horrible.

[JNelson6563]

50. Those poor victims

My heart breaks for their loved ones.