Powerful twin blasts rock North Caucasus

One police officer has been killed and some 60 people injured as a result of a double terror attack in the capital of the Russian republic of Dagestan, Makhachkala. Among the injured are both civilians and police officers.

More than 30 of the injured remain in local hospitals, three of them in a critical condition. All the rest received first aid and did not need any further assistance.

The first blast took place at the central square in Makhachkala, wounding passers-by. The second went off moments later and was estimated to have the equivalent of 40 kilos of TNT. Both bombs are believed to have been planted underneath parked cars.

The first action appeared to be a trap for the police, who rushed to the scene and were caught by the second, even more powerful blast, told a source in the local law enforcement.

The prosecution has already called Thursday`s actions a terrorist act, as published on the Investigative Committee`s website.

Police are believed to have a list of the definite suspects. Operatives are already working out the ways to intercept them.

Also early on Thursday, a senior officer`s car came under heavy machine gun fire in the Buynaksk region of Dagestan. The local police department chief was heading to his office when the accident happened. Two of his guards were killed in the shootout, but the officer himself was not hurt.

Earlier on Wednesday, two explosive devices were defused in the same Dagestan region. However the devices were planted on the roads outside cities and likely targeted military convoys.

The head of the Republic of Dagestan has interrupted his business trip in Moscow and flown to Makhachkala as the situation in the region has deteriorated.

Attacks continue to plague Dagestan and the volatile North Caucasus region following years of fighting. Although major fighting has been quelled for the moment, local security forces still struggle to make the situation stable.

sections: Accidents