(London Times) Editorial - Russians remember, as most of the world does not, that this is not the first time that Chechen terrorists have singled out the most vulnerable as targets. Nine years ago they seized a hospital in Stavropol, holding pregnant women and babies among their 2,000 hostages in a siege that ended in 100 deaths. In the days preceding their assault on the Beslan school, suicide bombers blew up two passenger aircraft and a Moscow subway station. President Putin's insistence on an urgent session of the UN Security Council opens up a potentially useful avenue for concerting policy with Islamic governments whose societies are being warped by extremist doctrines.
2004-09-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive