Ruzanna Ibragimova, the widow of a militant killed in shootout in the Russian Dagestan region, was identified by Russian authorities as a possible suicide bomber who might already be in Sochi for the Olympic Games. She also goes by the name Ruzan--or Ruzana--Ibragimova, and she’s also known as Salima, reports said on Monday.
Employees in Sochi, the city hosting the Games, told ABC that posters with the 22-year-old or 23-year-old woman were sent out over the weekend, with officials asking locals to locate her.
It’s been reported that she is affiliated with the terrorist organization Caucasus Emirate, which has issued threats against the Olympics, which will be held in several weeks.
She is said to have a 10 centimeter scar across her left cheek, a limp, and an arm that doesn’t bend at the elbow.
Russian officials told the Telegraph that she may have traveled to Sochi from Dagestan on Jan. 11 or Jan. 12.
“According to our information Ms Ibragimova may be used by the ring leaders of illegal armed groups for the organisation of terrorist acts in the zone of the 2014 Olympics,” a Russian notice reads.
The widows of fighters killed in the North Caucasus conflict between Russian security forces and anti-Russian fighters have been used as “Black Widows” to carry out suicide attacks in major urban areas.
“The fact that one individual either was able to stay in the area before the ring of steel went up or get through it really raises questions about the strength of the Russia security apparatus,” Christopher Swift, a Georgetown University professor and researcher who has looked into militant groups in the Caucasus region, told ABC.
On Sunday, a video emerged with two men from a purported Islamist group saying there would be a “surprise” for Russia and President Vladimir Putin during the Olympics, NBC reported.
The men are said to be from the group Anars Al Sunna and released the video Sunday. “That which we will do, that which we have done, is only a little example, a little step,” said one of them in the footage.
“We’ll have a surprise package for you,” another said to Russian officials. “And those tourists that will come to you, for them, too, we have a surprise.”
American officials have expressed concern over terrorist threats made ahead of the Olympics.
