MINSK, Belarus — An explosion tore through a key subway station in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, during evening rush hour Monday, killing 11 people and wounding 126. An official said the blast was a terrorist act.
President Alexander Lukashenko did not say what caused the explosion at the Oktyabrskaya subway station, but he suggested that outside forces could be behind it.
“I do not rule out that this gift could have been brought from outside,” Lukashenko said. The authoritarian leader, under strong pressure from the West over his suppression of the opposition, has frequently alleged that outside forces are seeking to destabilize his regime.
Deputy prosecutor-general Andrei Shved said the blast was a terrorist act, but he did not give further details.
The station is within 100 yards of the presidential administration building and the Palace of the Republic, a concert hall often used for government ceremonies.
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