Russian President Vladimir Putin this Monday attributed the terrorist attack in a concert hall in Moscow to “Islamic radicals”, but again made a connection to Ukraine, claiming that the attackers were trying to escape to the neighboring country.
“It is important to answer the question: why did the terrorists, after their crime, try to leave for Ukraine? Who was waiting for them there?”, asked the Russian President at a Government meeting, adding: “We know who committed this atrocity against Ukraine Russia and its people. What interests us is who ordered this.”
The attack, carried out on Friday and which left at least 137 dead and 182 injured, was claimed by the Islamic State terrorist group, while authorities in Ukraine, a country invaded by Russia in February 2022, ruled out any involvement.
“Those who support the Kiev regime do not want to be accomplices to terror and supporters of terrorism, but many questions arise,” said the Russian President, questioning who benefits from this attack.
“This atrocity could be a new episode in the series of attempts by those who, since 2014, have been fighting against our country through the neo-Nazi regime in Kiev”, said Putin, who also commented that “the Nazis, as is known, never disdained to use the dirtiest and most inhumane methods to achieve their goals”.
Russian security forces detained 11 people allegedly linked to the attack on the Crocus concert hall, located on the outskirts of Moscow.
Speaking at a meeting with government officials, Putin said those deaths were committed by extremists, “whose ideology the Islamic world has been fighting for centuries.”
Kremlin spokesman asks to wait for investigation
The Kremlin leader said over the weekend that four attackers were arrested while trying to flee to Ukraine, but did not mention their affiliation with the Islamic State, having once again omitted the terrorist group in his comments today.
The United States and France also indicated that the Islamic State was behind the attack on the outskirts of Moscow.
This morning, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov refused to assign responsibility, urging journalists to await the results of the Russia investigation.
He also declined to comment on the news that Washington’s intelligence services alerted Moscow authorities on March 7 about a possible terrorist attack, only commenting that any such information is confidential.
Four men, identified in Russian media as Tajik citizens, were charged by a Moscow court on Sunday night with carrying out the terrorist attack.
Before the court, they showed signs of having been severely beaten, and two admitted their guilt, although their conditions raised questions about a possible exercise of coercion.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said the investigation is still ongoing but promised that “the perpetrators will be punished” and “deserve no mercy”, while former President Dmitri Medvedev, now deputy head of the Council of Security, urged authorities to “kill all those responsible”, although they incur a maximum life sentence.
Search operations will continue until at least Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
