Sochi Olympics To Be Shadowed by Latest Suicide Bombing in Russia

Russian firefighters and security officials at the Volgograd train station after a suicide bombing Dec. 29. (STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)

Analysis

A suicide bomber, reportedly female, blew herself up in the entrance hall of a train station in Russia's southern city of Volgograd on Dec. 29, killing between 13 and 18 people according to early estimates. With just 42 days until the Winter Olympics start in Sochi -- a mere 430 miles (692 kilometers) from Volgograd -- this attack further compromises Russia’s ability to show it can keep the country safe before the international event.

The blast occurred near the metal detectors at the Volgograd-1 train station’s front entrance at 12:45 p.m. local time, according to Russian officials. Surveillance footage of the blast shows an explosion in the train station’s central hall. It is common for an attacker in Russia to hit passenger lines before the metal detectors at the front of a train station or airport since this is where large crowds tend to back up. The National Anti-Terrorism Committee said the explosion could have been caused by a female suicide bomber, which is common in Russia and a particular signature of the Northern Caucasus militant groups.

This is the second terrorist attack in Volgograd in two months; in October, a female suicide bomber detonated her explosives on a bus, killing six.

Volgograd is a large transportation hub for connections by train and other methods from northern to southern Russia. It will most likely be one of the common transit points for people traveling from Moscow or Kazan to Sochi for the Winter Olympics in a little over a month.

The leader of the Caucasus Emirate, Doku Umarov, has called for insurgents from the Northern Caucasus, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan to stop Russia from being able to hold the Olympics. With the Winter Games themselves so heavily secured, soft targets such as train and bus stations or airports along the routes to get to Sochi will continue to be likely targets for attacks.

In the lead-up to the Olympics, Russia has stepped up its crackdowns on militants in the Northern Caucasus. But the attack today shows that it is unlikely Moscow will be able to fully secure Russia before the games. Moscow -- and particularly Russian President Vladimir Putin -- has pegged much of the country's reputation on being a strong and stable state and plans to demonstrate this with a large show at the games. But the inherent volatility in the Northern Caucasus is something Russia has never been able to contain.

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