From Fox News, .
MOSCOW “” A rebel-linked Web site said Friday that Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev had claimed responsibility for the power outage that plunged Moscow into chaos two days earlier.
“Our sabotage units delivered a major blow to one of the most important life-support systems of the Russian empire,” the Kavkazcenter site quoted Basayev as saying in an e-mail.
Russian officials have blamed worn-out equipment for Wednesday’s power failure, which began with an explosion and fire at a 40-year-old substation.
The Federal Security Service declined comment on Friday’s claim and telephone calls to the Industry and Energy Ministry were not answered.
But Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko was quoted earlier in the day as rejecting speculation that a terrorist act was responsible for the blackout.
“I think that this is not a terrorist act. We are just using old equipment, from 1958, which needs to be replaced,” Khristenko told the RIA-Novosti news agency, the Gazeta.ru news Web site reported.
The blackout affected millions of people in Moscow and the surrounding region, stranding subway riders and trolley passengers, and leaving entire neighborhoods in the dark…