How Russia's Navy silenced a grieving mother's anguish

A Russian naval medic forcibly injected sedatives into the distraught mother of a sailor lost on the Kursk as she confronted the country's deputy prime minister.

A television tape of the incident shows the woman collapsing moments after the officer used a syringe to inject her from behind with sedatives.

The mother was with a group of sailors and relatives at the naval base of Vidyayevo who met Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov seven days after the 10,700 tonne submarine sank, killing 118 men.

The tape, recorded by a Murmansk television channel, shows the grief-stricken woman pleading with Mr Klebanov.

A report in the London Times quoted her as saying "How much longer are we going to have to endure this? They are in a tin can ... Do you have children? Surely not."

After this outburst a naval officer tried to take her arm and move her away but she refused to go.

At this point a medic approached her from behind and stabbed her with the needle. Within seconds she had collapsed into the arms of the officer and other bystanders.

The Times said a naval spokesman admitted giving sedatives to the relatives of the missing men.

"And not just to them, to us too. You know, here it's not considered to be that terrible. The men from the Kursk were our friends."

Russian captain tried to save son in sunken submarine

Herald Online feature: Russian submarine disaster

Russian Centre for Arms Control: OSKAR subs

World Navies Today: Russian subs

Russian Navy official website