This was not Saratovýs first test of vigilance by the FSB. First they left a suspicious bag in plain view in the waiting area of the bus station, but guards walked past the explosives several times, paying it no mind. Now the director of the bus station can expect a reprimand, while the staff will receive anti-terrorism training.

The next day the FSB officers brought the fake bomb to school. The two big men had no difficulty getting past a yawning security guard and leaving two large black plastic bags right in the middle of the lobby. For half a day, teachers and students of School #5 walked around the bags, staring at them, but never raising the alarm. Only the cleaning woman, once she began mopping the lobby floor after lunch, noticed the ‘bomb’.

The woman, of course, was troubled by wires sticking out of a strange box in one of the packages.

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Investigators estimate cost of Domodedovo airport terror attack

Investigators have calculated the cost of organizing the terrorist attack on Moscow airport Domodedovo to have been approximately 500 thousand rubles (about $20,000), according to an article in ‘Kommersant’.

According to investigators, the biggest expense for the terrorists was the purchase of an automobile. This was intended for Rustam Altemirov and Zaurbek Amriyev to scout out the most convenient sites for an attack. Two other accomplices, Islam and Iles Yandiyev, also used the vehicle to meet Magomed Yevloyev at the Moscow bus terminal. Yevloyev was the immediate perpetrator of the terrorist attack, and came from Ingushetia.

The attackers chose Domodedovo from among the several metropolitan airports because there, according to the scouts’ observations, security was the most negligent in checking out people passing through metal detectors by the airport entrance. Security often walked away from the metal detectors, while many of the passengers, taking advantage of the crowded conditions, avoided them altogether — as did suicide bomber Yevloyev on the day of the bombing.

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Will the Strasbourg Court's verdict unravel the mysteries of the 'Nord-Ost' tragedy?

Vladimir Kara-Murza: The Strasbourg court found Russia guilty of Human Rights violations during during the assault of Dubrovka in Moscow. While trying to rescue the 'Nord-Ost' hostages, the Russian authorities violated the right to life — Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

After 8 years of litigation the Strasbourg court ruled that they had to pay 64 plaintiffs compensation from 8 thousand to 66 thousand euros. This was stated in an announcement by the ECHR, which was published on the organization's website.

Our citizens who turned to the court say that the Russian authorities used unreasonable force, did not provide timely medical assistance to the hostages, as well as ineffectively investigating the attack.

We are talking with Karinna Moskalenko about whether the Strasbourg court's verdict will unravel the mysteries of the 'Nord-Ost' tragedy. Moskalenko is the lawyer for the victims of the 'Nord-Ost' attack, while Elena Milashina is a columnist from 'Novaya Gazeta', and Dmitri Milovidov is an activist for the 'Nord-Ost' public organization. What is the meaning and principal value of the Strasbourg court's verdict?

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Strasbourg reaches a decision on ‘Nord-Ost’. On December 20th, the European Court of Human Rights almost fully satisfied claims by victims and relatives of the deceased victims of the terrorist attack on the theatrical center at Dubrovka.

The applicants themselves consider today’s decision by Strasbourg to be a real victory, and had been waiting for several years. Now they hope that an objective investigation into the incident will take place. The victims and relatives of the deceased hostages filed their claims with the European Court back in 2003.

In their petitions, they demanded that those who planned the hostage rescue operation be brought to justice. The security forces at the time released a poisonous gas into the auditorium where the audience and actors of the musical ‘Nord-Ost’ were being held hostage. Information about the gas is still a secret. The plaintiffs believe that the use of this gas killed and injured not only the terrorists, but a large number of hostages as well.

They also state that the government was unable to organize necessary medical assistance to the victims. There were no measures taken to block off traffic so that ambulances could quickly reach the hospitals, and physicians at the hospitals simply had no idea how to treat people poisoned by an unknown gas. In their lawsuits, they also pointed out that there was no effective investigation into the incident.

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