Arson attack on Chechen exile
LONDON, England -- Exiled Chechen rebel envoy Akhmed Zakayev has suffered an arson attack at his London home, the British Foreign Office has confirmed.
The fire caused minor damage but no injuries, police said. It was unclear who was behind the attack.
Zakayev, an envoy for Chechen separatist leader Aslan Maskhadov, was granted political asylum in Britain last year. Russia's foreign ministry would like to extradite him.
Zakayev has previously predicted Russian security sources may seek to kill him while in Britain.
But a Moscow official said that was laughable and suggested the incident may have been concocted for publicity purposes, Reuters reported.
Britain's Foreign Office confirmed an arson attack had taken place, but gave no details or comment on the circumstances.
British police were investigating the attack and said they were keeping an "open mind" regarding the motive.
"There was minor damage to the front door, but no injuries," a police spokeswoman told Reuters. "Inquiries continue to establish how the fire was caused. We have not made any arrests."
Zakayev could not be immediately reached, and friends and representatives declined to comment, citing his security, Reuters reported.
The Chechen has frequently claimed Moscow agents were out to kill him and other rebels exiled in the West.
Two Russian agents were convicted in Qatar for a car bomb that killed ex-Chechen rebel leader Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev in February.
"I do not exclude that what they did in Qatar they could try to do in any European country," Zakayev told Reuters last month.
Interfax news agency quoted Russian SVR intelligence service spokesman Boris Labusov as saying "it (was) laughable even to discuss the possibility of connecting SVR to these incidents."
Labusov said Moscow wants to put Zakayev on trial, "which means that Russia wants him alive and kicking," he said.
Labusov suggested Zakayev might be looking for publicity.
"There have been many cases in history when certain people staged attempts on their lives, trying to attract society's attention to themselves with various goals," Interfax quoted him as saying.
Alternatively, Labusov said, the Chechen may have been targeted by relatives or friends of people angry at Chechen involvement in violent incidents such as the recent Beslan school siege.
"We cannot fully rule out such a possibility," he said.
Zakayev fought off a previous extradition attempt in November last year. At that time, a judge ruled there was a "substantial risk" that he would be tortured if returned to Russia.
Rebels from Chechnya, in the Caucasus region of southern Russia, have been seeking independence for years.
A former actor, Zakayev served as deputy prime minister of Chechnya following elections in 1997.
He is wanted by Moscow to face charges ranging from murder and torture to grievous bodily harm allegedly committed in Chechnya between 1995 and 2000.
The Russian authorities also have accused him of involvement in the deadly 2002 Moscow theater siege.
