VLADIMIR PUTIN ACCUSED OF INVOLVEMENT IN BOMBING RUSSIAN CITIZENS A Russian media owner has rocked the Kremlin with accusations that Moscow orchestrated a 1999 bombing campaign, that killed 300 people. Boris Berezovsky claims the bombings, blamed on Chechen rebels, were the work of the secret service, operating with President Vladimir Putin`s complicity. It was one of Russia`s worst terror campaigns. In September 1999, a series of apartment bomb blasts killed 300 people. Chechen rebels were blamed. Moscow retaliated, launching air strikes on the breakaway republic. The war led to a wave of nationalist pride, which swept former KGB head Vladimir Putin to power. But now the secret service is being accused of orchestrating the attacks. And President Putin of knowing about the plot. His accuser, Boris Berezovsky, was part of President Boris Yeltsin`s inner circle. The media owner helped get Vladimir Putin elected, but they fell out. He now lives in self-imposed exile in London. BORIS BEREZOVSKY, RUSSIAN BUSINESSMAN: I started to investigate, myself, this story around one year ago and today I may give my conclusion. I am sure that it was organised by FSB. FSB was formerly the KGB and Mr Berezovsky has made claims against it in the past. But until now, has never pointed blame directly at Mr Putin. This time, he says, he has evidence from explosives experts and investigators. Within hours of the allegations, Russian authorities struck back. Prosecutors in Moscow accused him of financing Chechen rebels and linked him to the kidnap and murder of a Russian General. Few Russians know what to believe. And, as the war in Chechnya drags on, the victims of the Moscow campaign still don`t know who to blame. Click here: SBS news - World News |
