Russia's interior minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev said he had
written to his French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve offering to send a puppy
named Dobrynya to replace Diesel, a Belgian Shepherd killed in a huge raid
north of Paris last Wednesday.
Kolokoltsev said that as "a sign of solidarity with
the people and police of France," he was offering the puppy, which
"will be able to occupy the place in service of the police dog Diesel
killed during a special operation to neutralise terrorists."
The dog is named after a hero of Russian folk legend,
Dobrynya Nikitch, famed for his strength, goodness and courage, he added.
Dobrynya is two months old and lives at a police dog centre
in the Moscow region, Channel One television reported. He will have to undergo
medical checks and quarantine before going to France.
Two dog-handlers from Moscow police's special forces also
posed with their dogs and signs with the hashtag "Je Suis Diesel" on
the service's Instagram account.
"Our four-legged friends also serve the police,
protecting society from terrorist threats," the Moscow police service
said.
The hashtag #JeSuisChien (I am a dog) trended on Twitter
after French police announced that seven-year-old Diesel died in the raid
targeting Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the suspected ringleader of the November 13
attacks in Paris that killed 130 people.
Three people died during the massive operation at the
apartment in Saint-Denis north of Paris -- Abaaoud, his cousin Hasna
Aitboulahcen, and a suicide bomber who has yet to be identified.
Seven people arrested during the raid were freed on
Saturday.
