The Chechen claims that her brother Rustam, a close aide to the top rebel commander Shamil Basayev, has been trying to force her to join Basayev’s unit and perhaps later to become a suicide bomber. According to Raisa, her brother personally took part in the organization of several major terrorist attacks. ''Rustam,'' Ganiyeva said ''is forcing her to follow the fate of Fatima and Milana,'' her sisters who became suicide bombers and were killed when special services stormed the theatre building in an attempt to free hostages.
In televised comments carried by state-run Rossia TV, FSB officials confirmed that there is, indeed, a rebel by the name of Rustam Ganiyev in Shamil Basayev’s grouping. Ganiyev, they alleged, is involved in hiring suicide-bombers for Basayev’s special unit, often referred to in the Russian media as the ‘Black Widows’.
FSB investigators have established that three months before the terror attack on Dubrovka, Ganiyev persuaded his sisters Fatima and Milana to adopt the Wahabbi doctrine, and a month before the attack took them from their home by force, saying that they were going to visit relatives.
Investigators said that they have established that Basayev paid Rustam Ganiyev $3,000 for offering his sisters as suicide bombers. After that he decided that his third sister must follow the same fate as Fatima and Milana. Perhaps, he hoped to receive another $1,500 for hiring Raisa, FSB officials said. The girl then approached the police for protection.
''In our family there were 10 brothers and sisters, of which only four are now alive,'' Raisa Ganiyeva said. ''The parents tried everything to prevent us from falling under the influence of Wahabbism.'' Using the style of military propaganda, the girl added: ''Despite the entreaties and even threats of our father, the children found themselves under the strong influence of Wahabbism, and the brothers were drawn into illegal armed formations.'' Three of Raisa’s brothers have been killed during the second military campaign in Chechnya.
News of a Chechen woman unwilling to become a suicide bomber and then turned herself in, was picked up immediately by the chief spokesman for the regional HQ for anti-rebel operations in the Northern Caucasus, Ilya Shabalkin.
''The sons of the Ganiyevs, being teenagers, found themselves involved in Wahabbi communities – jamaats. As a result two sisters were enlisted in the Movsar Barayev gang, and brought by force to the Moscow [musical] centre in Dubrovka,'' Shabalkin said.
Shabalkin pledged that the military and law enforcers will now carefully protect the Chechen girl from her bother and other members of the Basayev group, and if need be, may even move her to some other region. Shabalkin said that Raisa is a student, she plays guitar, likes to sing and wants to become a teacher of Russian.
Commenting on Raisa Ganiyeva's appeal to the law-enforcement bodies, Shabalkin said that this case shows vividly the tragedy that the Chechen people are going through because of the introduction of Wahabbism into their life. ''Arab mercenaries have planted in Chechnya the idea of using women as suicide bombers in acts of terror, and we can see that a brother shows ruthlessness towards his sisters if he can profit from this.''
Russian media reported earlier that the Black Widows unit was formed by Shamil Basayev to carry out terror attacks against civilians throughout the country. Suicide attacks carried out by Chechen women in Moscow, Chechnya and Ingushetia in recent months are all believed to be the work of the Black Widows.
Chechen law enforcers say that there are at least 35 women enlisted in Basayev’s suicide squad. Raisa Ganiyeva could have become the 36th. However, instead of succumbing to her brother’s threats, she chose to denounce him to the police.
19 АВГУСТА 15:15
