A shooting followed by a fire in a concert hall on the outskirts of Moscow left at least 40 dead and more than 100 injured on Friday evening, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation announced
(FSB).
This attack was claimed by the Islamic State group.
Russian diplomacy immediately denounced “a bloody terrorist attack” and a “monstrous crime”.
All public events planned in Moscow this weekend have been canceled, and an investigation into a “terrorist act” has been opened.
Ukraine, at war with Russia, denies any involvement.
Here's what we know.
What happened ?
The attack by several armed individuals took place in the evening at Crocus City Hall, a concert hall located in Krasnogorsk, a suburb just outside Moscow's northwest.
The Russian rock group Piknik performed there.
According to a journalist from the state news agency Ria Novosti, individuals in camouflage outfits burst onto the concert hall floor before opening fire and throwing "a grenade or an incendiary bomb, which caused a fire.
“The people in the room lay on the ground to protect themselves from the gunfire for 15 to 20 minutes, after which they started crawling out.
Many managed to get out,” said this Ria Novosti journalist.
The emergency services, cited by the Interfax agency, reported a “group of two to five unidentified people wearing tactical uniforms and armed with automatic weapons” who “opened fire on security agents at the entrance to the concert hall” then “started shooting at the audience”.
The Telegram news channels Baza and Mash, known to be close to the police, published videos showing at least two armed men advancing in the hall and others in which inert bodies and groups of people were seen rushing towards the exit.
Who are the attackers?
Around 10 p.m., the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack.
The “fighters withdrew safely,” Daesh also states in its press release, thus confirming that the Russian authorities failed to arrest the attackers.
Previously, Russia said it would "destroy" Ukraine's leaders if they were linked to the shooting.
kyiv immediately denied any involvement, even accusing “Russian special services” of being behind the attack.
What results?
A first assessment communicated by the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation
(FSB) reported around 8 p.m. at least 40 dead and more than 100 injured.
Where is the evacuation of survivors?
According to the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry, firefighters managed to evacuate around a hundred people who were in the basement of the concert hall.
Operations are underway to “rescue people from the roof of the building using lifting equipment”.
Law enforcement officers are also on site, according to Russian agencies.
What reactions?
The spokesperson for Russian diplomacy, Maria Zakharova, denounced on Telegram a “bloody terrorist attack”, calling on the international community to “condemn this heinous crime”.
“The images reaching us from Moscow are terrible,” commented the Quai d’Orsay on X (formerly Twitter) in the evening.
“Our thoughts are with the victims and injured and the Russian people.
All light must be shed on these heinous acts.”
#Russia |
The images reaching us from Moscow are terrible.
Our thoughts are with the victims and injured and the Russian people.
Full light must be shed on these heinous acts.
— France Diplomatie🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo) March 22, 2024
The White House is “in thoughts alongside the victims of the terrible attack” in a concert hall in Moscow, said a spokesperson for the American presidency, referring to “horrible and difficult to watch images”.
She said she had “no indication at this stage that Ukraine or Ukrainians are involved.”
For its part, the European Union said it was “shocked and dismayed” after the “terrorist attack” in Moscow.
Repeated attacks in the past
Telegram news channels Baza and Mash published videos showing large plumes of black smoke and flames coming from the building housing the concert hall, as well as images showing two armed men advancing into the hall, at least one man being visible on the ground near the entrance.
Other images show spectators hiding behind seats or evacuating the concert hall.
Russia has been the target of numerous attacks in the past committed by Islamist groups but also of shootings without political motives or attributed to unbalanced people.
In 2002, Chechen fighters took 912 people hostage in the Moscow theater of Dubrovka to demand the withdrawal of Russian troops from Chechnya.
The hostage-taking ended with an assault by special forces, and the death of 130 people, almost all of them asphyxiated by the gas used by the soldiers.
This attack also comes as Russia has been carrying out an assault on its Ukrainian neighbor for two years and has been the target of attacks by Russian anti-Kremlin fighters for several days in the regions bordering Ukraine.