Moscow Prosecutor's Office will have to ground legality of actions during storm of "Nord-Ost"

On 24 February, the Zamoskvoretsky District Court will consider a complaint lodged by the All-Russian Public Movement "For Human Rights" about the denial of the Moscow Prosecutor's Office to single out from the materials of criminal case No 229133 materials that contain information about new crimes, to open criminal cases in connection with the chosen materials, and to conduct a preliminary investigation into the actions of:

• the officers of special services who committed murders, exceeding measures necessary to detain the criminals who committed the armed attack and took hostages during the developments of 23-26 October 2002 in the Theatre Center on Dubrovka;
• the senior medical workers affiliated with the operational headquarters, who did not take necessary measures to provide opportune medical aid to hostages;
• the operational headquarters officials who gave the order to use derivatives of fentanyl, a narcotic substance, as a special remedy against more than 800 hostages.

The human rights activists found the denial to launch criminal investigations illegal. The All-Russian Public Movement "For Human Rights" holds that workers of the prosecutor's office continue to violate constitutional rights of the public movement's members, who advocate rights of the people suffered during the storm of the Theatre Center. The violation is that they limit their access to justice. The conclusion follows from the comparison between statements by the presidential contender Irina Khakamada and Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov: the decision on the storm, which ended with the death of every fifth hostage and extrajudicial execution of the terrorists, whose evidence could have helped prevent new crimes, was made from political considerations in order not to create a precedent of official talks with Chechen separatists. Humanitarian and legal considerations - to save as many hostages as possible and to detain the criminals - were apparently shifted to the background.

Editors note: See also the article "Nine victims of terrorist act on Dubrovka to get compensation".