Suicide bomb massacre at Moscow airport
A suicide bomber killed more than 35 people and injured scores more at Moscow’s busiest airport today.
The city immediately went on high terrorist alert and stepped up patrols on the Metro underground system, a previous terrorist target, after the blast at Domodedovo Airport.
Thousands of people were in the terminal at the time of the blast which happened in the international arrivals hall.
Mark Green, a British Airways passenger who had just arrived at the airport, told the BBC he heard the huge explosion as he was leaving the terminal.
“Literally, it shook you,” he said. “As we were putting the bags in the car a lot of alarms ... were going off and people started flowing out of the terminal, some of whom were covered in blood.”
“One gentleman had a pair of jeans on that was ripped and his thigh from his groin to his knee was covered in blood,” he said.
Domodedovo is generally regarded the most up-to-date of Moscow’s three commercial airports, but its security procedures have been questioned.
In 2004 two suicide bombers were able to board planes at Domodedovo by buying tickets illegally from airport personnel. The bombers blew themselves up in mid-air, killing all 90 people aboard the two flights.
Built in 1964, Domodedovo is 26 miles south-east of the centre of Moscow and handled over 22 million travellers last year.
Terrorists have targeted other transportation centres in Moscow.
In more recent suicide bombings, twin blasts in the Metro last March killed 39 people and wounded more than 60 people.
In December 2009, Chechen rebels blew up a high-speed train between Moscow and St. Petersburg, an attack that killed 26 people and injured scores.
President Dmitry Medvedev said: ``from the preliminary information we have it was a terror attack,''
Sergei Lavochkin, who was waiting in the arrivals hall for a friend to arrive from Cuba, said he saw emergency teams carrying people out of the terminal.
“I heard a loud bang, saw plastic panels falling down from the ceiling and heard people screaming. Then people started running away,” he told Rossiya 24 television.
Currently 77 airlines offer regular flights to Domodedovo, serving 241 international and national routes, according to airport’s website.
The airport insists that security is one of its top priorities, claiming on its website that its “cutting-edge operations technology guarantees the safety of passengers’ and guests’ lives.”
