(Moscow) The Kremlin announced on Saturday the arrest of 11 people, including four attackers in the attack carried out in a concert hall in the suburbs of Moscow the day before, which left at least 115 dead and was claimed by the group jihadist Islamic State (IS).
Russian authorities have not reacted to the IS claim but officials have cited a supposed link with Ukraine. Vladimir Putin has still not addressed the Russians.
Kyiv, which had denied any involvement on Friday evening, rejected the “absurd” Russian accusations on Saturday. “Ukraine has not the slightest link with the incident,” insisted the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, Mykhaïlo Podoliak.
Read “Russia: A heavy history of bloody attacks”
The Russian president spoke with foreign leaders and thanked rescuers in a written statement Friday, but he did not speak publicly about the attack on Crocus City Hall, the deadliest in the country in two decades years and the bloodiest in Europe to have been claimed by ISIS since the attacks of November 13, 2015 in Paris.
The Kremlin announced on Saturday “the arrest of 11 people, including four terrorists involved in the attack”.
These four people suspected of being the perpetrators of the attack were arrested in the Bryansk region, bordering Ukraine and Belarus, the Investigative Committee then specified.
The FSB claimed that the suspects had “proper contacts on the Ukrainian side” and planned to flee to that country, without providing further details on the nature of these links or proof of their existence.
PHOTO MAXIM SHEMETOV, REUTERS
A woman places flowers at a makeshift memorial for the victims of the attack at Crocus City Hall in the Moscow region.
MP Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the Duma Defense Committee, said Ukraine’s involvement could “not be ruled out”.
The death toll rose to 115 on Saturday, the Investigative Committee announced. It is expected to rise further as the search continues and could take days.
The attackers allegedly used “automatic weapons” and caused a large fire in the building with an “inflammable liquid,” investigators added.
The victims were killed by gunshots or by inhaling smoke from the fire, according to investigators.
EI
L’EI, que la Russie combat en Syrie et qui est actif aussi dans le Caucase russe, a déjà commis des attentats dans le pays depuis la fin des années 2010. Mais le groupe n’y avait jamais revendiqué une attaque d’une telle ampleur.
Il a affirmé sur l’un de ses comptes Telegram que ses combattants avaient « attaqué un grand rassemblement […] in the vicinity of the Russian capital Moscow.
The jihadist organization said its commando then “returned to its base safely”.
This assault, which Russian media began reporting around 8:15 p.m. in Moscow, was carried out by several armed individuals at Crocus City Hall, located in Krasnogorsk, on the northwest exit of the Russian capital.
PHOTO OLGA MALTSEVA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
According to the first elements of the investigation, the causes of these deaths are “gunshot wounds” and inhalation of fire smoke, indicated the Investigative Committee.
The fire “completely burned” the concert hall, explained the governor of the Moscow region, Andrei Vorobiov.
Anna, 40, who was there with her husband, said on Saturday that she “ran towards the exit” as soon as she heard banging noises, which were in fact shots.
” I was stressed. People were trampling on each other, there was a stampede,” she said, explaining that her husband “fell” but that they were finally able to escape.
The US Embassy in Russia warned its citizens two weeks ago that it was “closely monitoring reports that extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, including concerts.”
On Tuesday, Vladimir Putin denounced “provocative” statements and “a desire to intimidate and destabilize our society”.
” In mourning ”
Despite IS’s claim, many questions remain unanswered.
According to Russian media and MP Alexander Khinstein, some of the suspects are from Tajikistan.
The authorities of this Central Asian country said they had “not received confirmation from the Russian authorities regarding the false information currently circulating on the involvement of Tajik citizens”.
Tajikistan, bordering Afghanistan where IS is active, has been confronted with a multitude of Islamist armed movements since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. In recent years, citizens of the country have been accused of being linked to jihadist attacks, particularly in Iran.
On Saturday, police and special forces were still deployed in front of and in Crocus City Hall, the top of the building blackened and partially destroyed by the flames of the day before, under a gray sky.
Hundreds of rescue workers were clearing debris after the roof had collapsed into the auditorium.
From the morning, long queues had formed in front of some blood donation centers in Moscow, according to images from state media.
Posters also appeared at bus stops showing a candle and the inscription: “We are in mourning 03/22/2024”, the date of the attack.
PHOTO ANTON VAGANOV, REUTERS
A poster showing a candle and the inscription: “We are in mourning 03/22/2024”, the date of the attack, in Saint Petersburg
Security measures have been reinforced and several public events have been canceled.
The international community denounced this assault, with the EU and Spain saying they were “shocked” and the White House “alongside the victims”.
The spokesperson for the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs assured “to condemn in the strongest terms” this act.