1999 Grozny refugee convoy shooting

Infobox civilian attack
title=Grozny refugee convoy attack


caption=
location=Near Grozny, Chechnya
target=Refugee convoy
date=December 3 1999
time=
timezone=
type=Shooting attack
fatalities=About 40
injuries=7
perps=OMON
motive=

Grozny safe corridor shooting incident happened on December 3 1999, when about 40 people fleeing the besieged Chechen capital Grozny were killed by a Russian policemen.

The refugee convoy, consisting of about 50 people in seven or eight passenger cars and one bus marked with white flags, was heading towards the border with the Russian republic of Ingushetia, when they approached a federal roadblock near the village of Goity. According to the survivors, masked OMON [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19991206/ai_n14275401 Rebels inflict heavy losses as Russian forces close on Grozny] , "The Independent", Dec 6, 1999] troops opened automatic rifle and machine gun fire from their position in the nearby forest without warning. The bus exploded as bullets pierced its gas tank. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06EFDD123EF936A35751C1A96F958260 New Reports Back Claims of Attack on Chechen Refugee Convoy] , "The New York Times", December 5, 1999] After the shooting, the troops gave the first aid and painkillers to the handful of survivors and allowed them to go.

The seven surviving refugees eventually reached the hospital in Sleptsovskaya, Ingushetia, where they were interviewed by journalists. Russian Ministry of Defence stated that the media reports of this incident were "disinformation".

A similar incident involving refugees fleeing Grozny was reported in August 1996. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9907EED81231F936A2575BC0A960958260 Chechen Refugee Convoy Machine-Gunned, Leaving 14 Dead] , "The New York Times", August 15, 1996]

See also

*Baku-Rostov highway bombing

References

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/549893.stm 'Russians fired on refugees'] BBC News, 4 December, 1999
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/1999/dec/05/chechnya.theobserver1 Russians 'mowed down fleeing civilian convoy'] , "The Guardian", December 5 1999