Moscow Subway Hit By Suicide Bombings

(March 29) -- Two female suicide bombers blew themselves up on Moscow's busy subway system this morning, leaving at least 38 people dead and injuring more than 60.

Alexander Bortnikov, the head of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), has said its investigators believed "terrorist groups related to the North Caucasus" were responsible. Previous suicide bombings in the capital have been carried out by or blamed on Islamist rebels fighting for independence in Chechnya. And last month, Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov declared that "the zone of military operations will be extended to the territory of Russia ... the war is coming to their cities."

CNN reported that a Web site linked to Chechen rebels claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev promised that he would act "without compromise" to root out terrorism. "The suppression of terror and fight against terrorism will be continued," he said. U.S. President Barack Obama issued a statement that the American people stood together with Russians in opposition to violent extremism and "heinous" terrorist attacks.

The blasts took place during the hectic morning rush hour and were timed to maximize casualties. The first explosion occurred at 7:56 a.m. at the central Lubyanka station, near the headquarters of the FSB intelligence agency, and claimed at least 24 lives. "I heard a bang, turned my head and smoke was everywhere. People ran for the exits screaming," 24-year-old Alexander Vakulov, who said he watched from a train on the opposite at Park Kultury, told The Associated Press.

Around 40 minutes later, a second bomb tore apart a train at Park Kultury, near Gorky Park, as commuters were boarding. Twelve people are believed to have died in that detonation. "I was in the middle of the train when somewhere in the first or second carriage there was a loud blast. I felt the vibrations reverberate through my body," one male passenger told the RIA news agency. "People were yelling like hell. There was a lot of smoke and within about two minutes everything was covered in smoke."

FSB boss Bortnikov told reporters that forensic teams had recovered "fragments of the bodies of two female suicide bombers" from the wreckage, and that, "according to preliminary evaluations, these individuals were, by place of residence, linked to the North Caucasus." He added that a preliminary forensic report indicated the bombs had been made with the powerful explosive hexogen -- commonly known as RDX. The bomb that went off at Lubyanka station had an equivalent force of 9 lbs of TNT, while the bomb at Park Kultury was about half that powerful.

The last time Moscow was hit by a confirmed terrorist attack was in summer 2004, when a suicide bomber blew herself up outside a subway station, killing 10. But today's explosions are sure to lead many ordinary Russians to question the government's repeated claims that its hard-line approach to Chechnya has boosted domestic security. After fighting two bloody wars in the country, from 1994 to 1996 and 1999 to 2005, Russian authorities have handed over power to local strongman Ramzan Kadyrov, whose personal militia has been accused by the U.S. State Department of being "engaged in kidnapping and torture."