President Vladimir Putin had asked parliament for broader anti-terrorist powers in the wake of the abduction and murder of five Russian diplomats in Iraq, allegedly by an al-Qaeda-linked group. One was shot on June 3 and the other four were abducted in the attack and later executed.
On July 5, the lower house of parliament, the State Duma, passed a relevant bill, and on July 7 the Federation Council passed a resolution on the head of state's right to fight terrorists abroad.
In line with the document, the Armed Forces and secret services can act abroad to stop terrorist activity in order to protect citizens' rights and freedoms, Russia's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.
The law, drafted following Russia's ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism, introduces amendments to the counter-terrorism law as well as to the penal code, and the laws on the media, communications, and money laundering.
It reinstates a provision allowing the state to seize property from people charged with major crimes such as treason, espionage, seduction, hostage-taking, kidnapping, drug and human trafficking, extortion, money counterfeiting, and smuggling of materials and technologies that could be used to manufacture weapons of mass destruction.
The law also puts restrictions on mass media coverage of anti-terror operations, designating the leader of an operation as the only person entitled to provide reporters with any related information.
President Vladimir Putin said July 6 that using special services overseas to combat terrorism was not a breach of international law.
"I see no violations here. Under Article 51 of the UN Charter, states can individually or jointly rebuff an aggression. It does not say that this aggression should come from one state against the other," Putin said during a Web cast.
