STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: We are going to begin with terrorism in Russia, where at least 21 people are dead and more than 140 are injured, all victims of car bombings, which the Kremlin blames on Chechen rebels. Three blasts went off within moments of each other in southern cities near Russia's border with Chechnya. CNN's Steve Harrigan has details.</s>STEVE HARRIGAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three separate bomb attacks rocked Southern Russia not far from the breakaway region of Chechnya. Eleven people were killed instantly, and dozens more rushed to local hospitals after what the Kremlin calls a series of terrorist attacks. The most damaging blast occurred in an outdoor market in the city of Mineralnye Vody, when a car bomb went off killing 11. At the same time, about 10:00 in the morning locally, another blast went off outside a police station, leafing a dozen injured. The third explosion killed two more police officers in the region of Karachaevo- Cherkessiya. Investigative teams cordoned off the explosion sites to gather evidence. So far, one man has been detained. (on camera): The border region near Chechnya where Russia has been fighting a war for the past 17 months has been plagued by kidnappings and explosions, as the violence continues to stretch far beyond the battlefield. (voice-over): The Kremlin blamed the hijacking of a Russian airliner last week, in which three people were killed, on Chechen rebels. Steve Harrigan, CNN, Moscow.
Three Terrorist Bombings in Southern Russia