10 PEOPLE DEAD IN MOSCOW MARKET BOMBING

By MARIA DANILOVA, Associated Press Writer August 21, 2006

MOSCOW - A bomb blast tore through a Moscow market Monday morning, killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens, officials said.

Deputy Mayor Vladimir Resin said a homemade bomb detonated in a two-story trading arcade at Cherkizovsky market in the northeastern part of the city about 10:30 a.m. City prosecutor Yuri Syomin told reporters at the scene that 41 people had been hospitalized.

The Interfax news agency reported that two suspects had been detained. It cited unidentified investigators as saying both had been seen leaving a bag near one of the market's pavilions shortly before the explosion.

Syomin said the bombing was likely connected with organized crime or a dispute between businessmen, but investigators were not ruling out terrorism.

A 2,150-square-foot section of the market collapsed in the blast, Emergency Situations Ministry spokeswoman Yulia Stadnikova said. At least two of those killed were children, she said.

The Russian general prosecutor's office said it had opened a murder investigation. Terrorism is a separate offense under Russian law.

The market is one of several sprawling complexes on the outskirts of the city with hundreds of food, clothing and hardware stands.

"It sounded like a thunderstorm," said Vyacheslav Lobastov, who was shopping at the market at the time of the blast.

Markets in Russia's restive Caucasus region frequently have been targeted by bombers in recent years; most are believed to be connected to organized crime or commercial disputes. In June, two people were injured in an explosion at a market in Samara.

In February, a roof at a Moscow market collapsed under heavy snow, killing 66 people.