Elistanzhi cluster bomb attack
Encyclopedia
Elistanzhi cluster bomb attack occurred on October 7, 1999, in Chechnya
, when two Russia
n Sukhoi Su-24
fighter bombers dropped several cluster bomb
s on the apparently undefended mountain village of Elistanzhi.
The bombing killed at least 34 (48 according to some reports) and injured some 20 to over 100 people in the small village, mostly women and children; at least nine children were reportedly killed when one bomb hit the local school. Witnesses and victims stated that there were no military objectives in the village prior to or at the time of the attack. Representatives of the Russian human rights
group Memorial
visited Elistanzhi shortly after the bombing and found no evidence of any Chechen separatist military presence in the village.
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
, when two Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Sukhoi Su-24
Sukhoi Su-24
The Sukhoi Su-24 is a supersonic, all-weather attack aircraft developed in the Soviet Union. This variable-sweep wing, twin-engined two-seater carried the USSR's first integrated digital navigation/attack system...
fighter bombers dropped several cluster bomb
Cluster bomb
A cluster munition is a form of air-dropped or ground-launched explosive weapon that releases or ejects smaller sub-munitions. Commonly, this is a cluster bomb that ejects explosive bomblets that are designed to kill enemy personnel and destroy vehicles...
s on the apparently undefended mountain village of Elistanzhi.
The bombing killed at least 34 (48 according to some reports) and injured some 20 to over 100 people in the small village, mostly women and children; at least nine children were reportedly killed when one bomb hit the local school. Witnesses and victims stated that there were no military objectives in the village prior to or at the time of the attack. Representatives of the Russian human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
group Memorial
Memorial (society)
Memorial is an international historical and civil rights society that operates in a number of post-Soviet states. It focuses on recording and publicising the Soviet Union's totalitarian past, but also monitors human rights in post-Soviet states....
visited Elistanzhi shortly after the bombing and found no evidence of any Chechen separatist military presence in the village.
External links
- VOA Report, Voice of AmericaVoice of AmericaVoice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...
, 10/9/1999 - CARPET BOMBARDMENT OF THE ELISTANJI VILLAGE, OCTOBER 7, 1999, MemorialMemorial (society)Memorial is an international historical and civil rights society that operates in a number of post-Soviet states. It focuses on recording and publicising the Soviet Union's totalitarian past, but also monitors human rights in post-Soviet states....
, 26.10.1999 - The attack on the village of Elistanzhi (7 October), Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, 1 December 1999 - Russian Warcrimes in Chechnya, 1, YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....