Assailants stormed into a large concert hall in Moscow on Friday, opening fire on the crowd, resulting in the deaths of more than 60 individuals, with over 100 others sustaining injuries. The venue was also set ablaze during this audacious attack, which occurred shortly after President Vladimir Putin solidified his authority through a meticulously planned electoral victory.
Following the incident at Moscow’s Crocus City Hall, the perpetrators fled in a white Renault vehicle, as reported by Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency, which released a photograph of the car. The Russian Investigative Committee has initiated collaborative efforts with investigators, criminologists, and specialized units from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Federal Security Service (FSB) to carry out thorough on-site examinations. They have seized weapons and ammunition from the location and are currently analysing footage from security cameras.
The incident occurred during a gathering for a concert by the Russian rock band Picnic. The Investigative Committee, the primary state criminal investigation agency, confirmed on Saturday that over 60 individuals lost their lives. Health authorities provided a list of 145 wounded individuals, with 115 of them being admitted to hospitals, including five children.
Footage displayed the structure engulfed in flames, with a large cloud of smoke billowing into the night sky. The street was illuminated by the flashing blue lights of numerous fire trucks, ambulances, and other emergency vehicles, while fire helicopters flew overhead to extinguish the fire that took several hours to bring under control.
ISIS has confessed about their assault on Moscow’s Crocus City Hall. ISKP (ISIS-K), also known as Islamic State in Khorasan Province, emerged in eastern Afghanistan in late 2014 and swiftly gained a reputation for its extreme brutality. The group has a track record of carrying out attacks both within and beyond Afghanistan, including claiming responsibility for the assaults on Kabul’s international airport in 2021, a suicide bombing at the Russian embassy in Kabul in September 2022, and twin bombings in Iran earlier this year that resulted in the deaths of nearly 100 individuals. The top US general in the Middle East cautioned earlier this year that ISIS-K possessed the capability to launch attacks on US and Western interests outside of Afghanistan “with little to no warning.”
