Moscow Concert Hall Shooting: Kills at Least 40, Injures over 100, Russian Officials Confirm
Russia’s Federal Security Service has confirmed the death of 40 people and over 100 wounded in an attack today at a Moscow concert hall.
Multiple gunmen dressed in combat gear stormed into a large concert hall at Crocus City Hall on Moscow’s western edge and unleashed automatic gunfire on the audience.
While Russia's leading investigative body is investigating the occurrence as terrorist attack, Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, described the event as a “bloody terrorist attack.”
The assault occurred just days after President Vladimir Putin cemented his grip on the country in a highly orchestrated electoral landslide.
The Investigative Committee said it has opened a criminal probe into the charges, though it didn’t say who might be behind the attack.
According to Interfax, a group of men began shooting both at the building's entrance and within the hall, where numerous attendees were present for a "Picnic" rock group concert. Videos recorded by eyewitnesses audibly captured the machine gun fire.
The band members were said to be unharmed as they were in the dressing room getting ready for their performance at the time of the incident.
News reports said that the assailants also used explosives, causing a massive blaze at the concert hall.
Video posted on social media showed huge plumes of black smoke rising over the building.
Russia’s state RIA Novosti news agency reported that at least three people in combat fatigues fired weapons. The state Tass news agency also reported the shooting.
Riot police units were sent to the area as people were being evacuated.
Russian authorities said security was tightened at Moscow’s airports and railway stations.
After the deadly armed assault, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin declared the cancellation of all public events slated for the weekend in the city.
Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, in a communication to Putin, strongly condemned the "brutal murder of innocent people," a sentiment echoed by Kazakh President Tokayev, who also extended support to Russian law enforcement.
Ukraine refutes any involvement in the attacks. The White House extended sympathies to the victims and their families following the assault. The United States had previously issued alerts regarding potential terrorist activities in Moscow just days prior to the attack.
Deputy Chairman of the UN Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, admitted that the “Kyiv regime” could be behind the attack.
Ukraine has denied involvement in the attacks, with Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president writing on X:
Ukraine certainly has nothing to do with the shooting/explosions in the Crocus City Hall (Moscow Region, Russia). It makes no sense whatsoever
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