Putin employs ATC to hunt Russian diplomats murderers in Iraq

Moscow, July 18 (UNI) Russian President Vladimir Putin has placed the National Anti-Terrorist Committee (ATC) in charge of coordinating the efforts of Russian special services, to track down and eliminate the murderers of Russian diplomats in Iraq.

''Mr Putin placed the Committee in charge of coordinating the operations of special services and overseeing these efforts,'' Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and head of the Anti-Terrorist Committee, Nikolai Patrushev, told the third meeting of the committee today.

''This applies to finding and liquidating the terrorists involved in the abduction and murder of Russian diplomats in Iraq,'' Mr Patrushev was quoted, as saying, by the Interfax news agency.

In the wake of killing of four kidnapped Russian diplomats recently by Iraqi insurgents, having links with al-Queda, Mr Putin ordered the special forces to track down and eliminate the killers.

Mr Patrushev also said Russia's security forces foiled terrorist plans targeting the G-8 summit in St Petersburg which concluded yesterday.

''The plans and objectives hatched by terrorist leaders and extremist organisations to thwart the summit in St Petersburg were uncovered and prevented,'' he said, adding, ''the Russian security forces had been on high alert both at the summit venue and in the troubled North Caucasus region.

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