From dismal Chechnya, women turn to bombs
By STEVEN LEE MYERS (New York Times)
Updated: 2004-09-10 15:31

She and the other neighbors and co-workers in the market said they did not believe that the women could be involved in the latest attacks because they did not openly express any more feelings of anger or bitterness than anyone else. They were described as religious, but not deeply so. They wore head scarves, but not veils, which are rare in Chechnya. They dressed in clothes that would be unacceptable in any stricter Muslim society. "They talked about war, about life, about cosmetics, like all normal women," the neighbor said.

They also did not disappear for long periods, as did others who have later showed up in suicide attacks. "The girls who seek revenge go to the mountains," the neighbor said. "They do not trade in the market."

The four women left together on that Sunday, telling their neighbors they were headed to Azerbaijan. A woman who worked beside Ms. Dzhbirkhanova said she had told her she needed to replenish her supplies of children's clothes, shoes and accessories before the new school year began on Sept. 1. Another neighbor said Ms. Taburova's sister was planning to be married on Aug. 29 and, as is customary here, Ms. Taburova wanted to buy linens and other clothes for her wedding present.

Officials cited in Russian news reports have offered conflicting accounts of the women's route after leaving Grozny. Some have said they boarded a bus in Khasavyurt, a border town in neighboring Dagestan, or flew from its capital, Makhachkala. Still another version had them flying to Moscow from the Azeri capital, Baku, hours before Amanat Nagayeva and Ms. Dzhbirkhanova boarded the doomed flights at Domodedovo.

Officials at the Federal Security Service, the Interior Ministry and the Prosecutor General's office declined to discuss the investigation into the attacks.

Ms. Dzhbirkhanova told those who worked beside her that during a previous trip in the spring someone stole her goods, as well as her passport. That was evidence enough for those who knew her that it was someone else who blew up the plane, though the neighbor said the pictures of the women broadcast on state television appeared to be theirs.

Mr. Israilov believes the four women might yet turn up, unharmed and uninvolved. "If her name was announced on television, how could she come back?" Mr. Israilov said of Ms. Dzhbirkhanova. "She might be afraid."

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