Two injured in car explosion in Moscow

Moscow, Sep 11 (UNI) Two people were injured in a car explosion last night on Tverskaya Stree (former Gorky Street), near Pushkin Square, here.

The 42-year-old driver of the Toyota Camry was hospitalised with hip and leg injuries, while his female passenger received a slight concussion, television channels reported.

Explosive experts said the explosive device, equivalent to 100-150 grams of TNT, had been planted beneath the driver's seat, Russian news agencies reported.

Criminal proceedings had been launched on charges of hooliganism and explosive-trafficking, the punishment for which ranged from seven to eight years imprisonment.

The city police were probing the reasons for the explosion, including terrorist attack, professional conflicts and personal animosity.

The explosion might be an attempt to intimidate the car's owner, a businessman from Yakutia, police sources told agencies.

A terrorist attack in August 2000 near the site of last night's explosion, adjacent to the Pushkinskaya metro station, had killed 10 people.

UNI