| Grozny refugee convoy shooting | |
|---|---|
| Part of theBattle of Grozny | |
| Location | 43°19′00″N45°41′00″E / 43.316667°N 45.683333°E /43.316667; 45.683333 NearGrozny,Chechnya |
| Date | 3 December 1999 (1999-12-03) |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
| Deaths | At least 40 |
| Injured | 7 |
| Perpetrators | OMON |
TheGrozny refugee convoy shooting occurred on 3 December 1999, when at least 40 people fleeing thebesieged Chechen capitalGrozny were reportedly killed by Russian special police units,OMON.
According to accounts from survivors, arefugee convoy consisting of about 50 people in seven or eight passenger cars and one bus marked withwhite flags, was heading towards the border with the Russian republic ofIngushetia, when they approached a federalroadblock near the village ofGoyty. One survivor described masked OMON[1] troops opening fire withautomatic rifles from their position in the nearby forest without warning. The bus exploded as bullets pierced its fuel tank.[2] After the shooting, Russian soldiers gavefirst aid andpainkillers to the handful of survivors and brought them to the hospital inOrdzhonikidzevskaya, Ingushetia, where journalists interviewed them.[2][3]
The incident happened just a few miles from a major battle at the crossroads ofUrus-Martan, which sits astride a road that Chechen militants were using as a supply line. Another battle was under way not far from there, in the village ofAlkhan-Kala [ru].[4] TheRussian Ministry of Defence stated that the media reports of this incident weredisinformation. Officials were quoted as saying that 30 vehicles were destroyed on roads leading out of Grozny, but that all the cars contained rebels, not civilians. They also said they had opened a safe passage out of Grozny for the thousands of civilians.[2]
A similar incident involving refugees fleeing Grozny was reported in August 1996 during theFirst Chechen War.[5]
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