The upcoming Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia in February have been targeted by an Islamic militant group named Vilayat Dagestan, which is based in the nation’s North Caucasus region.The terrorist group said it was responsible for a pair of deadly suicide bombings in the city of Volgograd in December and posted a video online which claimed that more attacks will be coming during the Olympics. The attacks in December resulted in 34 deaths and dozens of injuries.
The suicide bombings targeted transportation hubs as a train station and bus were targeted. The Russian government then assured citizens and visitors that the Olympic Games will have the best security possible.
In the recent video which was posted by the terrorists, two men speaking in Russian can be seen warning Russian President Vladimir Putin that, “If you hold these Olympics, we will give you a present for the innocent Muslim blood being spilled all around the world: In Afghanistan, in Somalia, in Syria.”
The video also claimed that tourists to Russia will be targeted as well and claimed responsibility for the mayhem in Volgograd last month. The video goes on to identify the suicide bombers and says they can be seen preparing the explosives and strapping them to their bodies before the attacks.
The video lasts for a total of 49 minutes and the two men can be seen holding onto Kalashnikov automatic rifles. Black banners can be spotted behind the men with the banners covered in Arabic religious phrases and are similar to the ones used by al-Qaida.
The Russian Caucasus Emirate is made up of several militant groups with Vilayat Dagestan being one of the most deadly. The groups are fighting to force the Russian government into establishing an independent Islamic state in the region.
The North Caucasus sits on the southern border of Russia and is located east of the Olympic city of Sochi. The Russians stated that security for the Olympic Games was already as high-tech and thorough as it could get, so the new threats haven’t changed anything security-wise.
Back in 2012, Doku Umarov, who is the Chechen leader of the Caucasus Emirate, said that he had ordered all civilian attacks to be stopped. However, he rescinded on this and in July he told his followers that they should do what they can do disrupt the Olympics.
The two attacks in December have shown the authorities that civilians are once against targets for terrorist attacks. There have been recent reports that Umarov has been killed recently, but these haven’t been verified.
The Vilayat Dagestan group said they attacked Volgograd because they wanted to fulfill Umarov's wishes. The Olympics are just weeks away and many nations are now worried about security issues for their athletes and fans. However, nobody has pulled out of the event as of today.
Russia is also scheduled to host the World Cup of soccer in 2018.
