Mother Of Boston Bombing Suspects Speaks Out

07:52

June 24, 2013

Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, mother of the two Boston bombing suspects, is pictured in Makhachkala, regional capital of Dagestan, Russia, Thursday, May 30, 2013. (Musa Sadulayev/AP)

The mother of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev plans to come to the U.S. for her son's first court hearing, scheduled for July 10.

Speaking in Dagestan, Zubeidat Tsarnaeva told the BBC her sons were not responsible for the bombings. Dzhokhar's older brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed in a shootout with police after the bombings.

Zubeidat Tsarnaeva says she wants to know why her sons have been blamed for the bombings. She also said that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was not radicalized when he visited Dagestan for six months last year.

The Russian government reportedly has a recording of a 2011 phone call in which Tamerlan Tsarnaev "vaguely discussed" jihad with his mother.

Guest:

Tim Franks, presenter of the BBC's Newshour, reporting from Dagestan.

This segment aired on June 24, 2013.

Boston Marathon bombing