I used to ride this metro system everyday. I have friends in Moscow. I'm pissed. I'll update this post later. Via Jeff Quinton.

According to Itar-Tass, the blast was just outside the Rizhskaya metro station. Below is a map of the Moscow metro system. Rizhskaya is on the light orange Kaluzhkaya-Rizhkaya line. It is near the center of the city, just one stop North of the ring line. To put this in perspective, I used to live near Belorusskaya on the brown ring line.

Update: Via McQ at QandO it appears that it was a Chechen Woman who was responsible. Also, via Ace, the evidence now seems to confirm earlier reports that pointed to Chechen women being behind the Russian airline explosions a few days ago. The women, it seems, hid the explosives in a very, er, "awkward place".

Others: Jeff Quinton (aka, the Detective), James Joyner , In the Bullpen more...

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Chechen ERA:

Russian investigators announced today explosives were found on both planes that crashed with the loss of 90 lives, as attention focussed on the roles of two dead female passengers believed to be of Chechen origin.

The Russian press was quick to paint the pair as the latest in a line of female suicide bombers from the strife-torn Caucasus republic to strike, citing their suspected ethnic origins and the fact no relatives have come forward to claim their remains.

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I've been warning my readers about this for weeks. Background in these posts: War Looms Between Russia and Georgia, Ossetia: Impending War, Georgia vs. Russia, Ossetia Ceasefire Broken, Ossetia Rebels on the Run

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****Exclusive Analysis****

After careful research (meaning me looking at a map and slapping forehead) Dr. Rusty Shackleford retracts his earlier statement that the bombing at a bus station two days ago in Moscow was probably unrelated to yestereday's downing of two Russian Airliners. My Pet Jawa has learned that the two are probably connected.

From the Moscow Times:

An explosion went off at a bus stop at 30 Kashirskoye Shosse on Tuesday, injuring four people, a Federal Security Service spokesman said.

So, we have two planes going down from the same airport. The day before, a bus bomb went off on a bus line that leads to that airport. Is it a coincidence? Not likely. Further, more recent reports reveal that the bus stop was located across the street from a police station and went off at a time when police shifts were changing, hence a motive for this particular location.

Further, this is not the first act of terrorism on Kashirskoye Shosse. On September 13, 1999 a bomb went off in a residential apartment building located on Kashirskoye killing 19 people.

Added together, we have a strong case that the bus bombing was related to airplane attrocities committed the next day. It is even possible that the same person/persons committed both acts given the close proximity of the airport.

Updates are being kept by Jeff Quinton, Michelle Cantalano, and Blogs of War

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My regular readers know I follow Russian politics fairly closely. This just in from Jeff Quinton, news of two airplanes:

Air controllers on Tuesday lost contact with the second airplane with 44 passengers on board, Interfax news agency reported.

It quoted Emergencies ministry as saying contacts with Tu-154 flying from Moscow to the Black Sea resort of Sochi were lost at 3 p.m. EDT when it was expected to be 90 miles from the southern city of Rostov-on-Don.

Earlier Russian news agencies said that around the same time one more Russian passenger plane with more than 40 people on board went missing near the town of Tula south of Moscow.

One Russian airplane going down would not surprise me. Two, and I'm thinking terrorism. Remember, the Russians are fighting a hot war in Chechnya and a cold war against Georgia over South Ossetia. Updates in extended entry.

Update: A few thoughts

1) Chechnya. There is an election in Chechnya Sunday. While Spain continues to deny that the Madrid bombing affected elections, terrorist organizations assuredly read the elections that way. They bomb, Spain elects a government wishing to pull out of Iraq--no brainer. For liberals making their way to this blog for the first time and who have been led to believe that war in Chechnya is a simple war of liberation unrelated to the War on Terror, I would ask them to look at this pic of what Chechens 'freedom fighters' do to Russian soldiers they capture (Warning: Very Graphic!!!). There is a vast army of jihadis in the world stretching from the Phillipines to the Balkaans and connected by common ideology, tactics, and goals.

2) While I suspect Chechens are behind this, let's not forget that Russia is involved in another war in Georgia's South Ossetia. Ossetians are ethnically Russian and have been fighting a low intensity war of independence for the past decade. In the past two-weeks, the new Georgian Prime Minister vowed to take South Ossetia back and the shooting began again. The Georgian government has accused Russia of supporting the rebels (--probably true) and both governments have warned that there could be international consequences for the escalating violence. It is not likely that these planes were brought down by Georgians, but it remains a remote possibility. Background on the fighting in Ossetia can be found in this post.

3) A bomb went off at a bus stop in Moscow yesterday. Allah in public and Jeff Quinton in a private correspondence wondered if there was a connection since the Moscow Police have stated they think the bomb was the work of terrorists. While not ruling out the possibility, it should be noted that the bus stop where this bomb went off is on the outskirts of town--or at least, not in the central district in Moscow. It would be an odd location for a terrorist to set off a bomb. Moscow is not set up like New York of Los Angeles. There are no real 'suburbs' as we think of them and the farther you get from the center the farther you get from everything. Unless the Chechens are adopting Hamas style bus bombing tactics, it seems an odd location. My experience is that the Moscow Police are quick to shoot off their mouths and to blame anything out of the ordinary on Chechens or other 'undesirables'. Think Sherrif Roscoe P. Coletrain, only a heavy drinker, slightly corrupt, and a whole lot more of a biggot--that's your average cop in Russia.

Also blogging: Command Post, In the Bull Pen, Allah, Blogs of War, Jane, Athena, Chris Short, Michelle Malkin, Freedom of Thought, M.H. King, LGF, Wizbang, James Joyner, Juliette more...

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Once again, this is not looking good. I have no bone to pick with Georgia, I just worry this could lead to a regional conflict. Background here. More below. more...

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Thanks to Jane for e-mailing me about a surprisingly cogent analysis of the crisis that looms between Georgia and Russia over Ossetia--found in all places the Arab News. Unfortunately, it looks like the cease-fire brokered over the weekend may already be collapsing. Story in extended entry.

Background on the conflict here. For other Russia related news, see Winds of Change which has a monthly roundup on the region. more...

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I know I may be the only blogger out here who cares about this. What can I say? Ya za Rossii. If you are one of the three readers who have been following this, go to the extended entry for some good news. Hopefully, this is not the calm that preceeds the storm. more...

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The fighting between ethnic Russians in Ossetia and Georgia is escalating. This is not good. Up til now, Russia has fought this war through it's proxies in the Ossetian resistance. If Russia refuses to withdraw it's 'peacekeepers', this could escelate from civil war to full fledged international conflict. Further, other regional actors could get drawn into the fight in an effort to exploit the instability.

I have been speculating for some time that the reason Putin suddenly decided to improve relations with the US, by backing our pre-war claims of WMD in Iraq, was that he wanted a free hand in dealing with the Chechen rebels. I now wonder if Ossetia was part of his calculations? It should be noted that Georgian troops are US trained, while Ossetian rebels are backed by Russia. News and other info in extended entry. more...

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