Radioactive Material Uncovered In Moscow Park

A team of specialists reportedly retrieved a container of an apparently radioactive material from a Moscow park Thursday, and a TV network said it had been planted by Chechen rebels.

Russia’s independent NTV television showed its correspondent digging the container of radioactive cesium out from under a blanket of snow and said rebel commander Shamil Basayev - Chechnya’s most notorious rebel fighter - had recently revealed the location.

In an interview filmed this month, he told NTV the Kremlin should consider the cesium isotopes as his part toward “disarmament.”

The Interfax news agency said a team of specialists retrieved the container Thursday night and was examining its contents. The report said it appeared to be highly radioactive.

It said the Federal Security Service, the Nuclear Power Ministry, the Emergency Situations Ministry and other federal agencies had people on the scene.

The radioactive isotope cesium 137 has a half-life of 37 years and is used in cancer research and radiation therapy, among other things.

Moscow sent troops into Chechnya 11 months ago in a bid to end its self-declared independence.