Video Surfaces Threatening Terrorist “Surprise Package” for the Winter Olympics in Sochi … Are the Olympics Safe from Terrorism?

A new video was posted Sunday on a Chechen terrorist extremist web site threatening terror attacks for the upcoming Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia. The video threatens jihad and that, “We’ll have a surprise package for you,” one of the men said in the militants’ video. “And those tourists that will come to you, for them, too, we have a surprise.” This comes on the foot-heals of two terrorist bombings in the Russian city of Volgograd. One was a suicide bombing at a train station killing 14, and the other aboard a trolley bus.

Citing a new “surprise package” for Russia and Olympic spectators, Islamist militants in the North Caucasus Sunday launched a new threat to the Sochi Olympics with a purported “martyrdom” video by two suicide bombers who attacked a transit hub 400 miles away.

The video posted on a Chechen extremist site considered a credible platform for militant statements featured two unidentified men before the black flag of jihad and cradling AKMS rifles.

The duo — dressed in street clothes and without the usual trappings of jihadis — casually explained that Russians and those attending the Winter Games next month will not be safe as long as forces sent by President Vladimir Putin occupy the North Caucasus region near Sochi, Russia.

“We’ll have a surprise package for you,” one of the men said in the militants’ video. “And those tourists that will come to you, for them, too, we have a surprise. If it happens [the Olympics], we’ll have a surprise for you. This is for all the Muslim blood that is shed every day around the world, be it in Afghanistan, Somalia, Syria, all around the world. This will be our revenge.”

VIDEO – CNN

The American Thinker asks, Can the Russians pull off a terror-free Olympics? My personal opinion is I sure hope so; however, I have to agree with TAT, I don’t trust the Russians to be competent enough either. Also, these Muslim, Islamist, Chechen extremists are highly motivated and off the chain insane when it comes to martyrdom in the name of Allah.

I don’t trust the Russians to be competent enough to prevent attacks and protect the Olympics. To me, it’s not a question of “if” but “when” an attack will happen. People are willing to die to make Putin look bad. That does not bode well for the safety of tourists or athletes at the games.

The U.S. State Department today urged Americans traveling to the Winter Olympics in Sochi in southern Russia to be “vigilant and exercise good judgment” during the Games because of the continuing terrorist threat to the region.

The Russian government is devoting considerable resources to ensure the Sochi Olympics are safe and incident-free.  Large-scale public events such as the Olympics present an attractive target for terrorists, as did the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996.  Travelers should expect increased police presence and enhanced security measures in and around the Olympic venues.

Acts of terrorism, including bombings and hostage takings, continue to occur in Russia, particularly in the North Caucasus region.  Additionally, between October 15 – December 30, 2013 there were three suicide bombings targeting public transportation in the city of Volgograd, two of which occurred within the same 24-hour period. Other bombings have occurred at Russian government buildings, airports, hotels, tourist sites, markets, entertainment venues, schools, and residential complexes.  There have also been large-scale attacks on public transportation including subways, buses, trains, and scheduled commercial flights.

UPDATE I: Putin pledges stepped up security.

Putin has pledged that visitors to Sochi for the Winter Olympics will be kept safe.

“We will try to make certain that the security measures are not intrusive or too conspicuous, so they are not too noticeable for the athletes, the Olympics’ guests or journalists,” Putin said, according to the interview transcript.

“But at the same time, we will do our utmost to ensure that they are effective.

UPDATE II: Just curious, how in the hell did Sochi actually get awarded the 2014 Winter Olympics when it was in such a terror rich environment? How does the Olympic comity even contemplate a place like this in a hot bed of terrorism as the location for an Olympics?  Sochi is due west of Grozny, Chechnya, and is about a 13 hour drive. Also, the Boston Marathon bombers, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the ethnic Chechen brothers lived in Dagestan, which neighbors the Chechnya region in southern Russia. What’s there next pick, Iran, Palestine, how about Syria?

Freelance journalist Ilya Mouzykantskii (@ilyamuz) has put together a map of all terrorist attacks near Sochi since Russia was awarded the Olympic games