(RIA Novosti) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday he believed that Russia's terrorist No. 1 Shamil Basayev, killed in an operation Monday, would be punished even after death.
Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Federal Security Service, told Putin on Monday that Basayev had been killed in the southern Russian republic of Ingushetia, reports Trend.
"It is too little for him to just be killed," Putin told Canada's CTV television channel. "I think whatever religion he practiced he will receive his due for the crimes he committed even in the afterlife."
Putin said death was just retribution for Basayev, as "the blood of our children in Beslan and many other victims is on his hands."
Putin said that in its fight against terrorism, Russia would act in strict compliance with Russian law but reiterated that all legitimate measures would be taken to protect the country from an external terrorist aggression.