December 31, 2019

Russians on Edge After Record Wave of Bomb Hoaxes Sweeps Country
(Bloomberg) -- More than a million Russians have been caught up in the worst wave of bomb threats in years, sending people to social media for information about events largely ignored by Kremlin-controlled national television.While all of the threats to date have been hoaxes, bomb squads have descended upon schools, airports and shopping malls to investigate the calls, according to news reports from around Russia. In Moscow alone, more than a million people have been evacuated since Nov. 28, according to Interfax.The number of threats appears worse than a 2017 epidemic, when about 2,500 places received fake bomb threats in 75 regions around Russia over a four-month period.“This is a large-scale phenomenon,” said Alexander Khinstein, a member of the ruling United Russia party who sits on the lower house of parliament’s security committee. “We are dealing with cyber-terrorism here.”Source UnknownThe source of the calls hasn’t been established, but Russia has been targeted by terrorist groups, including Islamic State, in the past. The Federal Security Service, or FSB, detained two suspects in St. Petersburg last week after receiving intelligence from the U.S. about a possible attack.Several law enforcement agencies contacted by Bloomberg did not respond to requests for comments.The situation has attracted official attention this year, with security services giving a closed briefing for lawmakers explaining the problem, according to Khinstein.However, the 72% of Russians who get their news from television have been kept in the dark, with the main federal channels choosing to ignore the epidemic, opting instead for spots on President Vladimir Putin’s every move and year-end summaries.During the 2017 outbreak, coverage was more frequent. At the time, Alexander Bortnikov, the director of the Federal Security Service, announced in early October on national television that they’d found the culprits, only to see the problem drag out for another three months.Parents ‘Panic’In the absence of news coverage, a video statement by the deputy head of Moscow’s Department of Education about the bomb threats against schools received nearly 100,000 hits on YouTube and was widely shared on social media.“Parents have started to panic, they have pulled their children from classes and nobody knows when this will end,” said Nadezhda Ivanchenko, a teacher at a Moscow school that has been targeted eight times in December. “The strangest thing is that nobody understands what’s happening and there’s no official explanation.”The disruptions have stretched across the country, including in Khabarovsk, more than 13,000 kilometers (8,100 miles) to the east of Moscow. That city has been hit with numerous threats, with the airport and main rail station evacuated last week. More than 11,000 children had to leave their schools on Dec. 19 with the temperature at -20 degrees Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit).“Before there were bomb threats, but they usually targeted business centers and the perpetrators tried to collect ransom,” Ruslan Sokolov, a spokesman for Khabarovsk’s mayor, said. “This time it’s different.”\--With assistance from Ilya Khrennikov.To contact the reporters on this story: Ilya Arkhipov in Moscow at iarkhipov@bloomberg.net;Stepan Kravchenko in Moscow at skravchenko@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Gregory L. White at gwhite64@bloomberg.net, Jake RudnitskyFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Related Stories
Latest News
Top news around the world
Academy Awards

‘Oppenheimer’ Reigns at Oscars With Seven Wins, Including Best Picture and Director

Get the latest news about the 2024 Oscars, including nominations, winners, predictions and red carpet fashion at 96th Academy Awards

Around the World

Celebrity News

> Latest News in Media

Watch It
Ruby Franke’s Husband REVEALS Alleged Rules He Had to Follow at Home | E! News
March 28, 2024
_mU-3lE2QwI
#KenanThompson speaks out following the #QuietonSet documentary. (🎥: Tamron Hall Show) #shorts
March 28, 2024
8AGP-Gfw_Ek
King Charles Shares "Great Sadness" at Missing Royal Appearance | E! News
March 28, 2024
lyizFqf1kQY
Martha Reeves Walk of Fame Ceremony
March 27, 2024
QzyezumEPtQ
Eminem, 50 Cent & Snoop Dogg Present Dr. Dre with a Star on the Walk of Fame
March 19, 2024
4bNLs1hxVp8
Opening Remarks for the Variety Summit October 20th, 2023 Jay Penske
March 18, 2024
c6Z707iLq8E
Montell Jordan Dishes On Young MC Wedding, 'This Is How Date Night' Plans | TMZ
March 28, 2024
G3SMExj-qio
Davina Potratz Says TV Not Helping 'Selling Sunset' Relationship Woes | TMZ
March 28, 2024
D4piy4GNm4k
Logan Paul Rips Graham Bensinger Over Documentary, You Promised Apple TV+ | TMZ Live
March 28, 2024
NiSDpZhZklQ
Prince William pinned royal medal to Spice Girl Mel B’s boobs #shorts
March 28, 2024
O1cQ0UW9pco
Jennifer Garner shares ‘hard’ part of raising her and Ben Affleck’s kids
March 28, 2024
3Q7mZaVUdgc
50 Cent's ex Daphne Joy named as an alleged sex worker in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs lawsuit #shorts
March 28, 2024
yhLFI8DG9rM
TV Schedule
Late Night Show
Watch the latest shows of U.S. top comedians

Sports

Latest sport results, news, videos, interviews and comments
Latest Events
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
PSG W - Hacken W
28
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Barcelona W - SK Brann W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Chelsea W - Ajax W
27
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Playoffs - Women
Lyon W - SL Benfica W
17
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester United - Liverpool
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Inter Milan - Napoli
17
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Borussia Dortmund - Eintracht Frankfurt
17
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Chelsea - Leicester City
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Roma - Sassuolo
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Verona - AC Milan
17
Mar
ITALY: Serie A
Juventus - Genoa
16
Mar
GERMANY: Bundesliga
Darmstadt - Bayern Munich
16
Mar
ENGLAND: FA Cup
Manchester City - Newcastle United
16
Mar
ENGLAND: Premier League
Fulham - Tottenham Hotspur
16
Mar
SPAIN: La Liga
Osasuna - Real Madrid
13
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Atletico Madrid - Inter Milan
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Barcelona - Napoli
12
Mar
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: 1/8 Final
Arsenal - Porto
Find us on Instagram
at @feedimo to stay up to date with the latest.
Featured Video You Might Like
zWJ3MxW_HWA L1eLanNeZKg i1XRgbyUtOo -g9Qziqbif8 0vmRhiLHE2U JFCZUoa6MYE UfN5PCF5EUo 2PV55f3-UAg W3y9zuI_F64 -7qCxIccihU pQ9gcOoH9R8 g5MRDEXRk4k
Copyright © 2020 Feedimo. All Rights Reserved.