Moscow. The death toll in a concert hall terrorist attack in Moscow, Russia has increased to nearly 150. At the same time, the number of injured in this attack is more than 120. Russian local media quoted authorities as saying that so far 11 people have been detained, the Investigative Committee said that four of the detained people were directly involved in that attack.
Russian agencies and many leaders allege that the attack is linked to Ukraine, although the Islamic State group issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. A US intelligence official told The Associated Press that US agencies had confirmed that the group was responsible for the attack.
Russia’s Investigative Committee said the four suspects were arrested in the Bryansk region of western Russia. This area is very close to the border of Ukraine. Local news agency Tass, citing Russia’s FSB, said that the attackers were planning to cross the border to Ukraine. According to Tass, the head of the FSB informed President Vladimir Putin about the arrests on Saturday.
The attack came just days after Putin consolidated his grip on power in a highly orchestrated election landslide. This attack was the deadliest attack in Russia in the last few years. Immediately after the attack, some Russian lawmakers pointed the finger at Ukraine. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, denied any involvement.
Russian army marching at the incident site. (AP)
Mykhailo posted on X, ‘Ukraine has never used terrorist methods. In this war everything will be decided on the field only. Pictures shared by Russian state media on Saturday showed lines of emergency vehicles.
Videos posted online showed gunmen shooting civilians at close range at the venue. The roof of the hall, where Russian rock band Picnic had gathered on Friday, collapsed early Saturday morning as firefighters extinguished the blaze.