MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s top investigative agency is
investigating the shootings, explosions and fire at a
The Investigative Committee said it has opened a criminal
probe into the charges, though it didn’t say who might be behind the attack.
Several gunmen burst into a big concert hall on the edge of
The attack happened just days after President Vladimir Putin
cemented his grip on the country in a highly orchestrated electoral landslide.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows
below.
MOSCOW (AP) — Several gunmen burst into a big concert hall
on the edge of Moscow on Friday and sprayed visitors with automatic gunfire,
injuring an unspecified number of people and starting a massive blaze in an
apparent terror attack days after President Vladimir Putin cemented his grip on
the country in a highly orchestrated electoral landslide.
There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the
raid, the worst terror attack in Russia in two decades that came as the
fighting in Ukraine dragged into a third year. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin
described the attack as a “huge tragedy.”
Russia’s top domestic security agency, the Federal Security
Service, said there are dead and wounded but didn’t give any numbers.
Russian news reports said that the assailants threw
explosives, triggering a massive blaze at the
The attack took place as crowds gathered for a concert of
Picnic, a famed Russian rock band, at the hall that can accommodate over 6,000 people.
Russian news reports said that visitors were being evacuated, but some said
that an unspecified number of people could have been trapped by the blaze.
The prosecutor’s office said several men in combat fatigues
entered the concert hall and fired at visitors.
Extended rounds of gunfire could be heard on multiple videos
posted by Russian media and Telegram channels. One showed two men with rifles
moving through the mall. Another one showed a man inside the auditorium, saying
the assailants set it on fire, as gunshots rang out incessantly in the
background.
More videos showed up to four attackers, armed with assault
rifles and wearing caps, who were shooting screaming people at point-blank
range.
Andrei Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, said he
was heading to the area and set up a task force to deal with the damage. He
didn’t immediately offer any further details.
Russian media reports said that riot police units were being
sent to the area as people were being evacuated.
Russian authorities said security was tightened at Moscow’s
airports and railway stations, while the
White House National Security Advisor John Kirby said Friday
that he couldn’t yet speak about all the details but that “the images are just
horrible. And just hard to watch.”
“Our thoughts are going to be with the victims of this
terrible, terrible shooting attack,” Kirby said. “There are some moms and dads
and brothers and sisters and sons and daughters who haven’t gotten the news
yet. This is going to be a tough day.”
The attack followed a statement issued earlier this month by
the
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who extended his grip on Russia for another six years in the March 15-17 presidential vote after a sweeping crackdown on dissent, earlier this week denounced the Western warnings as an attempt to intimidate Russians.