The 2011 Aktobe bombing was a terrorist attack in the city of Aktobe, Kazakhstan on 17 May 2011. The attacker entered the headquarters of the National Security Committee in the region and set off a suicide bomb, killing himself and injuring two others.[1] Initially, the bombing was blamed on "organized crime" in what was considered the first mafia-related suicide bombing in history. Some newspapers said that Rakhimjan Makhatov [ru], the bomber, was a member of an organized criminal group. However, Kazakhstani officials eventually conceded that the attack was probably linked to Islamic extremists in the oil-rich province. The attack marked the opening of a violent summer in Kazakhstan's west, during which multiple attacks claimed the lives of a combined 19 people.[2]

2011 Aktobe bombing
LocationAktobe, Kazakhstan
Date17 May 2011
Attack type
Suicide bombing
Deaths1 (perpetrator)
Injured2

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Lillis, Joanna (17 May 2011). "Kazakhstan Official Blames Mafia for Suicide Bombing". Eurasianet. Retrieved 7 June 2016.
  2. ^ Lillis, Joanna (6 September 2011). "Kazakhstan: Astana Confronts Extremist Threat". Eurasianet. Retrieved 7 June 2016.

50°16′59″N 57°13′24″E / 50.2831°N 57.2233°E / 50.2831; 57.2233