‘Black Widow’ Threat Hangs Over Sochi
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Less than three weeks before the Winter Olympics are set to begin in the Russian city of Sochi, police there have begun hunting for suspected terrorists allegedly plotting attacks. Among them is at least one black widow, the term Russians use for female suicide bombers seeking to avenge their husbands’ deaths at the hands of the security services.
The warning followed one bombing in Pyatigorsk and three in Volgograd that have killed more than 40 people since October. The threat emanates from the North Caucasus region, where a homegrown insurgency is fighting to establish an Islamic state. On Jan. 20, a website linked to the insurgency posted a video of two men claiming responsibility for the Volgograd bombings and threatening Olympic tourists with more attacks.
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