| Russian special services have come across intelligence suggesting that foreign terrorist groups have sent money to Chechen rebels which would be used to disrupt the August 29 presidential election, said Sergei Ignatchenko, head of the Federal Security Service's (FSB) public relations center. The money is to be used to step up sabotage activities and harass Chechen civilians with threats and demands to boycott the election, he told Interfax on Tuesday. Terrorist Internet sites, which have become more active lately, claim that more money has been sent to Chechnya for this purpose, Ignatchenko said. "They have stepped up information attacks and the amount of misinformation. Statements from [militant leaders Aslan] Maskhadov, [Shamil] Basayev and [Maskhadov's emissary in London Akhmed] Zakayev have also become more frequent," he said. Special services and law enforcement agencies in Chechnya are working hard to thwart the rebel's plans to commit acts of sabotage before and during the election, Ignatchenko said. |