Authorities Shut Down Access to Red Square

Russian authorities have sealed off Moscow's Red Square at the height of the tourist season, apparently out of fear of bombings by Chechen rebels.

A handwritten sign taped to a metal barrier leading into the square, which runs along one side of the Kremlin, said: "Red Square is closed until September."

Police refused to say why, but the Izvestia daily said the closure was due to fears of attacks after two bomb attacks in the capital last month.