Russia Hunts for 'Black Widow' Suicide Bomber Ahead of Sochi Games

Russia Hunts for 'Black Widow' Suicide Bomber Ahead of Sochi Games

Russian authorities are searching for 22-year-old Ruzanna Ibragimova, a “Black Widow,” who may already be in Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics. They believe she may have infiltrated the security President Vladimir Putin brags about on a regular basis.

She is the widow of a terrorist reportedly killed last year in a shoot-out with police, Ibragimova goes by the nickname Salima and has a 10-centimeter scar across her left cheek, Russian authorities said. She also walks with a pronounced limp and has a stiff left arm that doesn’t bend at the elbow, authorities said.

Black Widows reside in Chechnya, and their husbands died during previous terrorist attacks against Russian forces during the two Chechen wars. These women step up and take their husband’s or another close male relative’s place. Naida Asiyalova detonated a bomb on a bus in Volgograd in October, which killed six people and injured over 30 people. A suicide bomber blew up a train station in Volgograd in December, but there are mixed reports if the bomber was male or female.

On Sunday, ABC’s “This Week” aired an interview with Putin where he again promised the world their athletes and visitors will be safe despite the numerous terrorist attacks in surrounding cities. Three occurred in Volgograd, which is a major transportation hub between Moscow and southern Russia, and Stavropol. A few hours after the interview aired, terrorists from the Caucasus released a video and threatened a huge surprise for those in Sochi.

“We’ve prepared a present for you and all tourists who’ll come over. If you will hold the Olympics, you’ll get a present from us for the Muslim blood that’s been spilled,” they warn.

Female suicide bombers have been responsible for multiple attacks in Russia. In 2011, 35 people died in a bombing at the Moscow airport. Another group of female terrorists previously attacked the underground railway stations in Moscow in 2010, killing 35 people. In 2004, female bombers blew up two airplanes at the Moscow airport and killed 90 people. Another 130 people were killed during a three day hostage situation in 2002. 

Doku Umarov, leader of the terrorist groups in Chechnya, released a video in July and asked his followers to make the Olympics their prime target in retaliation for Russia slaughtering Muslims when they conquered the Caucasus region in the 19th century. Chechnya leader Ramzan Kadyroz claims Umarov is dead, but there is no confirmation.

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