On 30 December, a suicide bomber walked into a railway station in the Russian city of Volgograd and detonated an explosive device, killing 17 people and injuring another 40. As horrific as this outcome is, however, it could have been far worse; the station was packed with people travelling to celebrate the New Year, offering the sort of target-rich environment the bomber obviously wanted. But eyewitnesses report he was prevented from reaching the most crowded parts of the station by a security checkpoint; had he been free to move further into the station, onto the platforms or even onto a train, the death toll could have been significantly higher. As it was, he appeared to grow nervous as he approached the security officials and detonated the device prematurely.
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