(Moscow) Vladimir Putin promised on Saturday to “punish” those responsible for the attack which left 133 dead in the suburbs of Moscow the day before, ensuring that the attackers had been arrested on their way to Ukraine and not mentioning the claim of the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.
Ukraine has firmly denied any link with the attack and said that Russia, whose offensive it has been fighting for two years, was seeking to shift the blame to it.
This attack on the Crocus City Hall concert hall is the deadliest in the country in twenty years, as well as the bloodiest to have been claimed by ISIS in Europe.
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The Russian president claimed that “all four perpetrators” of the attack were arrested while “they were heading towards Ukraine where, according to preliminary data [des enquêteurs]a “window” had been prepared for them to cross the border.”
Vladimir Putin took up the version of events presented earlier by his security services (FSB) and, like them, made no mention of the involvement of ISIS during his first televised speech since the tragedy.
The jihadist group, however, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying its fighters had “attacked a large gathering” near Moscow.
The Russian president assured that “those who are behind these terrorists will be punished” and that they “will not have an enviable destiny”.
He also denounced a “barbaric terrorist” act and declared a day of national mourning on Sunday.
The Kremlin had earlier announced “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.
“Ukraine has not the slightest link with the incident,” insisted the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, Mykhaïlo Podoliak, rejecting “absurd” accusations.
The head of public media RT, Margarita Simonian, published videos purporting to show confessions of two suspects during their interrogations, in which they do not name a sponsor. AFP is unable to confirm their veracity.
Warnings
The death toll rose to 133 on Saturday, according to authorities. It is expected to increase further, as searches in the rubble of the building ravaged by flames and whose roof partially collapsed continue and could take days.
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.
The attackers used “automatic weapons” and caused the large fire in the building with an “inflammable liquid,” investigators said.
The victims were killed by gunshots or by inhaling smoke from the fire, according to investigators.
This assault, which Russian media began reporting around 8:15 p.m. Friday in Moscow (1:15 p.m. Eastern time), targeted the Crocus City Hall, located in Krasnogorsk, on the northwest exit of the capital. Russian.
The fire “completely burned” the concert hall, said Moscow region governor Andrei Vorobiov.
Anna, 40, who was there with her husband, told AFP on Saturday that she “ran towards the exit” as soon as she heard clicking 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.”
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.
On Tuesday, Vladimir Putin denounced “provocative” statements and “a desire to intimidate and destabilize our society”.
ISIS, which Russia is fighting in Syria and which is also active in the Russian Caucasus, has already carried out attacks in the country since the end of the 2010s. But the group has never claimed responsibility for an attack of such magnitude. magnitude.
” 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” on this subject.
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.
Condemnation of the assault has poured in from around the world, from the European Union and the United States to China and the Middle East.