40 people killed in suicide bombing on commuter train

A SUICIDE attacker set off an explosion that tore through a commuter train yesterday near the rebellious region of Chechnya, killing 40 people and wounding scores of others.

President Vladimir Putin said the bomb was intended to disrupt this weekend's parliamentary elections.

Authorities said a man triggered the shrapnel-filled bomb and three women also were involved in the attack. Two of the women jumped from the train before the rush-hour blast and a third was gravely injured and unlikely to survive, the head of the Federal Security Service said.