With less than three weeks until opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Russian officials are now reportedly searching for a potential "black widow" terrorist who may have breached the city's security.
As ABC reports, authorities distributed fliers to hotels and airports in Sochi over the weekend. Those reportedly show a 22-year-old Dagestani woman named Ruzanna Ibragimova.
Police dubbed Ibragimova a "black widow" terrorist. They believe she's the widow of a militant who was killed in a shootout with police in Dagestan last year — and that she might now be plotting a suicide bombing in retaliation. (Via Fox News)
Citing one of the notices handed out in Sochi, The Telegraph writes Ibragimova might have traveled to Sochi on Jan. 11 or 12. It quotes the notice, saying, "According to our information Ms Ibragimova may be used by the ring leaders of illegal armed groups for the organisation of terrorist acts in the zone of the 2014 Olympics."
Ibragimova reportedly walks with a limp and has a 4-inch scar on her left cheek. Her left arm is also reportedly stiff and does not bend at the elbow. (Via The Epoch Times)
The search for the "black widow" comes as other threats to the Olympics surface.
On Sunday a video showing two men claiming to be behind two recent suicide bombings in Russia was posted on a Jihadi website. Those attacks, on a bus and in a train station in the city of Volgograd, killed more than 30 people. (Via RT)
In the video, the men claim to have prepared a "present" for the Sochi games and allude to the possibility of a chemical attack in Russia. (Via NBC)
In response to the threats, Russia has ramped up security around the games — including a so-called "ring of steel" around the city that will stretch 60 miles along the coast of the Black Sea and 25 miles inland. (Via CBS)
Russian President Vladimir Putin said: "Security is to be ensured by some 40,000 law enforcement and special services officers. ... We will draw on the experience acquired during similar events held in other regions of the world and in other countries. It means that we will protect our air and sea space, as well as the mountain cluster." (Via CNN)
As New York Daily News reports, Russia might be looking for as many as four so-called "black widow" suspects throughout the country — although they are only searching for one in Sochi.
