Land-mine in Chechen capital kills at least eight

At least eight people were killed and 20 others wounded when a land-mine blast ripped though a passenger bus at a busy junction in the Chechen capital, Grozny, yesterday.

The Russian Itar-Tass news agency cited an unnamed official at Russia's military headquarters in Chechnya who blamed the blast on rebels in the breakaway republic. Itar-Tass put the death toll at 11, including a four-year-old.

Chechen rebels do not have a history of deliberately attacking civilians but frequently plant land-mines on the routes of Russian forces and Chechen police. Russian television reported speculation that the mine had been intended for a military vehicle.

The Interfax news agency reported that at least eight people were killed and 28 injured, citing Movsur Khamidov, the Chechen Deputy Prime Minister. It said the bodies of three women, a man and two children were found at the scene and that two other people died in the hospital.

Most of the casualties were on the bus, which was travelling near the city's central market and bus terminus, Interfax said. The explosive was hidden in an abandoned metal booth at the junction. Interfax said body parts and bloodied belongings were found in the rubble of nearby buildings, many of which were destroyed in the two wars that have gripped Chechnya in the past decade.

No suspects were detained and the ruined buildings and nearby market may have made for an easy escape.