Female suicide bomber kills 13 at Russian railway station

A female suicide bomber killed at least 13 people at a railway station in southern Russia, the National Anti-Terrorism Committee said Sunday.

Dozens of others were injured in the explosion, which occurred at noon Sunday in Volgograd, a city near the volatile North Caucasus region, regional law enforcement agencies told local media.

The suicide bomber detonated her explosives in front of the metal detection arches inside the main entrance to the railway station, local media reported.

Police are currently investigating the blast on-site.

Live TV footage showed the railway station was cordoned off and ringed with ambulances and police cars.

"The investigative department of the Investigative Committee (IC) for Volgograd region launched a criminal case in relation to the explosion...in which no less than 13 people died, according to early reports," IC spokesperson Vladimir Markin said.

In October, a female suicide attacker blew herself up on a bus in Volgograd, killing seven people and injuring dozens of others. The attacker was later identified as the wife of Dmitry Sokolov, a man from the Moscow suburbs who joined an insurgent group in Dagestan.

In September, President Vladimir Putin warned the situation in the North Caucasus remained a challenge for state security. He called for all law enforcement departments to be mobilized to maintain law, order and peace in the region.