Explosion of the Lenin monument in St. Petersburg

On the night of April 1, 2009, in St. Petersburg, on the square in front of the Finland Station, a monument to V.I. Lenin was damaged as a result of an explosion.

The monument was "damaged from the back by an explosion of a shellless explosive device with a capacity of about 300 grams of TNT." A funnel measuring 80 by 100 centimeters formed on the monument. Lanterns are broken around the pedestal. There were no casualties as a result of the incident. The monument is going to be dismantled and restored.

On the evening of April 1, on one of the right-wing radical sites, a statement appeared by the Zalessky Combat Flying Squad (ZBLO) group, which claims responsibility for the explosion. "Lenin and the subsequent leaders of the USSR, bearers of the anti-Russian Bolshevik ideology, are guilty of the genocide of the Russian people carried out since 1917 ," the statement said.

Note that the same group previously confessed to the explosion of the monument in Ryazan in November 2008.

The name "Zalessky Fighting Flying Squad" in consonance resembles the name of the far-right group "Zalesskaya Rus", as reported by some media.

For a commentary by missionary hegumen Sergius (Rybko), rector of the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles at the Lazarevsky cemetery, see the section "Religion in Secular Society".

Based on materials from right-wing radical sites.

A hole from Lenin / They blew up a monument at the Finland Station // Kommersant. 2009. April 2.

Sources

• April Fool's Theses // Fontanka.ru. 2009. April 1st.
• Monument to Lenin blown up in St. Petersburg // Fontanka.ru. 2009. April 1st.