Minister: number of terrorist attacks in Russia halved since 2011October 31, 2013 - 10:41 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The head of Russia's police force said the number of terrorist attacks in the country had halved since 2011, though he gave no actual figures on the issue, long shrouded in murky statistics. "We're observing a downward trend in terror crimes during the past three years. The number of terror attacks has decreased by half," Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev said, according to RIA Novosti. Kolokoltsev, who spoke before the Federation Council, also complained that news outlets were making "heroes" out of terrorists by reporting about their lives. That statement comes hot on the heels of a high-profile suicide bombing that killed six in the southern city of Volgograd. The attack was blamed on the North Caucasus' Islamist insurgency, a leader of which recently lifted a moratorium on attacks on Russian civilians. That move raised questions about security at the upcoming Winter Olympics, to take place in the Caucasus Mountains. No common federal statistics are available for terrorism-related crimes in Russia. The Interior Ministry has said there were 622 "terror-related crimes" in 2011, including 29 actual terrorist attacks. The Federal Security Service reported 365 such crimes for the same year. Then-President Dmitry Medvedev put the figure at 94, and the Sydney-based Institute for Economics and Peace has said there were 184. Related links: Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Welcome to CaseKey 2024. Byblos Bank Armenia firmly stands by future innovators Strategic business cases, invaluable experience, innovative approaches and more than 25 events are in store for the participants of CaseKey 2024. Macron honors Charles Aznavour on 100th anniversary French President Emmanuel Macron has paid tribute to the memory of French-Armenian crooner Charles Aznavour. Blinken says U.S. reviewing a number of aid requests from Armenia He said the U.S. is reviewing the requests to determine what more it can do to increase its assistance to Armenia. At least 2 CSTO members participated in preparing 44-day war against Armenia – PM Nikol Pashinyan has declared that at least two CSTO member countries participated in preparations for the 44-day war against Armenia. |