VOANews.com - 2 Killed in Grozny Suicide Truck Bombing

2 Killed in Grozny Suicide Truck Bombing
VOA News
20 Jun 2003, 16:18 UTC

Chechen officials say a truck filled with explosives has blown up near a government compound in an apparent flawed suicide attack.

There are conflicting reports on the number of casualties from the blast, which left a crater some four meters deep. However police officials say they believe there were two people a man and a woman in the truck who were killed when it exploded.

Chechnya's chief prosecutor says he believes the bombers were targeting the nearby headquarters of several law enforcement units, but that the explosion was set off prematurely, possibly by rough roads. Initial reports from the scene said the truck bomb killed at least one person and wounded several others. Other officials report eight dead and as many as 36 injured.

The blast came one day before Chechnya's temporary legislature is to meet in its first session. Officials say the attack will not delay the meeting.

Last December a car bomb destroyed a government headquarters building in Grozny, killing more than 80 people. Earlier this month a suicide bomber blew up a bus, killing herself and some 14 others. Chechen separatists have been seeking independence for the southern Russian republic since at least 1991.