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What were terrorists in Grozny aiming at?

ALEXANDROVA Lyudmila

What was the chief aim of last Thursday’s terrorist attack in the Chechen capital, Grozny - the worst since 2010?

MOSCOW, December 5. /TASS/. What was the chief aim of last Thursday’s terrorist attack in the Chechen capital, Grozny - the worst since 2010? No official version is available at this point while unofficial ones are many. Some experts argue the terrorists’ ultimate target must have been Chechnya’s head, Ramzan Kadyrov, known as an irreconcilable crusader against fundamentalist militants. Others believe it was an attempt to deal a powerful blow to the federal authorities, which regard normalisation in Chechnya as their very successful project. Lastly, some suspect that the militants needed a high-profile attack as an argument to persuade their foreign sponsors and handlers to fork out.

In the small hours of Thursday, December 4, a dozen militants ventured into the Chechen capital, Grozny, to seize the House of the Press and a local school. By dawn, it was all over. The pockets of resistance were wiped out but 10 police officers had died and another 30 injured in fire exchanges. Official sources say the group numbered 10 to 15 gunmen, while according to some locals, the saboteurs’ group was larger. At least nine attackers were killed.

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