The extremist organization Isis has declared itself as the perpetrator of the terrorist attack in the Moscow concert hall late on Friday evening. 40 people died and more than 100 were injured.
Yrjö Kokkonen,
Satu-Maria Niikko
The terrorist organization Isis has declared itself the perpetrator of tonight’s terrorist attack in Russia. At least 40 people died and more than 100 were injured in the shooting at the Moscow concert hall.
The organization says on the messaging service Telegram that Isis fighters “attacked a large gathering… on the outskirts of the Russian capital, Moscow.”
At least four people in plainclothes opened fire in the concert hall. People have been killed and wounded, reports news agency Tass.
From the videos circulating on social media, it can be seen that there are several victims. According to news agency Tassi, 40 people have died and more than 100 have been injured. According to the news agency Reuters, there are also children among the dead.
The venue is the Crocus City Hall concert hall, located in the Krasnogorsk district in the northwest of Moscow. The concert hall can accommodate an audience of 6,000 people. The popular Russian rock band Picnic was performing.
The attackers used machine guns. They also threw a firebomb into the house, which started a fire, reports Ria Novosti. Two strong explosions have been heard from the building.
In videos published on social media, a large column of smoke rises from the house and the house is in open flames.
A large number of police and other rescue personnel have been sent to the scene. According to Ria Novosti, the concert hall has more than 50 ambulances.
The rescue operations are very urgent, as part of the audience had fled the fire to the roof of the house, which was partially collapsing due to the fire. However, the spread of the fire has been stopped.
National Guard special forces have also arrived.
The perpetrators of the attack have reportedly not been caught yet. Security measures have been stepped up at Moscow’s airports and railway stations.
All public events planned for the weekend in Russia have been cancelled.
Advance warning from the United States
Earlier this month, the United States warned its own citizens to avoid public places in Moscow because there were indications of a terrorist attack.
Some other western countries also gave the same warning to their citizens.
According to the US State Department, there is no indication that Ukraine was behind Moscow’s attack. The Russian Foreign Ministry asks what justification it has for its message.
The Ukrainian leadership says it has nothing to do with the attack. The same announcement has been made by the Russian forces fighting for Ukraine.
Source: Reuters
The news is updated.