2011 Minsk Metro bombing
The 2011 Minsk Metro bombing took place on 11 April 2011 when 15 people were killed and 204 were injured when a bomb exploded within the Minsk Metro, Belarus. The explosion happened at the central Kastryčnickaja station at 17:55 local time.
| 2011 Minsk Metro bombing | |
|---|---|
Emergency services outside Kastryčnickaja Station | |
| Location | Kastryčnickaja metro station, Minsk, Belarus |
| Coordinates | 53°54′6.84″N 27°33′41.04″E |
| Date | 11 April 2011 17:55 local time (UTC+3) |
| Target | Minsk Metro |
Attack type | Bombing, Mass murder |
| Weapons | Nail bomb with 5–7 kg TNT equivalent strength |
| Deaths | 15 |
| Injured | 204 |
| Perpetrators | Dzmitry Kanavalau and Uladzislau Kavalyou |
Initially the cause of the explosion was unclear, but was found to have been a bomb. The Prosecution Office launched a criminal investigation and classified the event as a terrorist attack. Two suspects arrested on 13 April confessed to the bombing but the motives remained unclear. In March 2012, both perpetrators, Dzmitry Kanavalau and Uladzislau Kavalyou, were executed by shooting.
There has been considerable debate about the possibility that the Belarusian government itself was behind the bombing. The UN Security Council statement condemning the bombing refers to "the apparent terrorist attack". The trial attracted international political condemnation and the verdicts passed out have been questioned, primarily by the Belarusian opposition and the EU. The bombing came at a time of a serious economic crisis and protests against President Alexander Lukashenko's government.