9 dead in 2 blasts in Chechnya
August 31, 2011 -- Updated 1347 GMT (2147 HKT)
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STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Nine were killed, 20 were wounded, Russia's RIA Novosti reports
- Two blasts occurred 30 minutes apart Tuesday night in Grozny
Moscow (CNN) -- The death toll from two suicide bombings Tuesday in Chechnya has risen to nine, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported Wednesday.
Another 20 people were wounded in the attacks in Grozny, capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, the report said, citing Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev.
The first blast occurred when officers attempted to detain a suspected militant, state-run RIA Novosti reported. About 30 minutes after that explosion, when emergency workers and others had gathered in the area, a second blast hit.
Among the dead were seven policemen, one person from the Emergencies Ministry and a civilian, the report said. The wounded included 16 police, one person from the Investigative Committee and three civilians.
Rebels in Chechnya started out fighting for independence in the 1990s, but in recent years the fight has been aimed more at imposing Islamist rule and asserting their authority in the area.
The standard of living in the southwestern republic is poor compared with the rest of Russia. Unemployment is rampant and infant mortality is high. In addition, the Chechen population of about 1 million is mostly made up of Sunni Muslims, who maintain a distinctly separate cultural and linguistic identity from Russian Orthodox Christians.
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