Explosion in a Moscow church

On November 30, at about 6:15 pm, an explosion occurred in the church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Biryulyovo in the southern district of Moscow, Interfax reports .

Law enforcement officials said that, according to preliminary data, the explosive device was homemade.

As the main version of the incident, a hooligan trick of teenagers is considered, but the investigation does not exclude the possibility that Satanists were involved in the explosion.

The explosion injured two people. The temple building was not damaged.

A criminal case has been initiated under Art. 213 (hooliganism) and part 1 of Art. 222 (illicit trafficking in weapons, ammunition and explosives) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

The "Council of Atheists of Runet" in its statement stressed that it considers "certain circles" in the Russian Church, who are interested in creating Orthodox folk squads, to be guilty of the incident.

"We condemn the obviously provocative hooligan act in the church of St. Nicholas and draw the attention of law enforcement agencies to the need to check whether this action has not only direct perpetrators, but also customers," the document says.

Sources

• An explosion occurred in the capital's church of St. Nicholas in Biryulyovo // Patriarchy.ru. 2008. December 1st.
• The explosion in the Moscow temple could have been a hooligan trick, the investigation does not exclude the involvement of Satanists - investigation // Interfax-religion. 2008. December 1st.
• The explosion in the church resembles a planned provocation (Statement of the Council of Atheists of Runet) // Official site of the Council of Atheists of Runet. 2008. December 1st.