U.S. officials seeking al-Qaida link to rebels' siege of Moscow theater

Arizona Republic/NY Times ^ | 11/19/03 | Judith Miller and Eric Lichtblau

[Coop]

WASHINGTON - American law enforcement officials are investigating last year's deadly takeover of a Moscow theater by Chechen rebels to determine whether al-Qaida was involved and whether criminal charges should be brought in the United States, officials said.

The death of an American citizen from Oklahoma City who was held hostage in the attack in October 2002 has allowed federal prosecutors to consider charges in the United States against Chechen organizers who they suspect may be linked to al-Qaida, officials said.

[Coop]

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[Getsmart64]

Sounds to me like Bush and Putin are trying to figure out a way to join forces and not leave it open for to much criticism....

[happygrl]

Almost all of the dozens of Chechen rebels inside the theater were reported killed, most also by the gas, ...

No, As I remember the reports, they had bombbelts on them and were shot in the head as they lay unconcious. I believe they were almost all women.

The loss of the hostages was regrettable, but I think they would all have been killed by the suicide/homocide bombbelts if they had not been gassed.

[Coop]

Whether or not the stories are accurate, I don't know. But I remember previously reading about most hostages dying from gas.