At least 133 people were killed and over 140 injured when gunmen attacked a packed concert venue on the outskirts of Moscow on Friday night. A large fire engulfed the roof of the Crocus City Hall complex and dramatic video showed panicked concertgoers taking cover as shots and explosions rang out.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said all four gunmen have been arrested, and that the suspects were trying to flee to Ukraine but Kyiv said allegations of Ukrainian involvement are “absurd”. The ISIS terror group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Putin has called the attack a “barbaric terrorist act” and announced a day of national mourning for March 24 (today). Muscovites are queuing to give blood for those injured and flower tributes have been placed at the scene of the attack. The US says it’s credible that the Islamic State group could be behind the attack, after the group said it did it. Russia has not commented on this.
The Governor of the Moscow region has shared some harrowing footage from inside the burnt out remains of the Crocus Concert Hall, revealing the full scale of the fire damage from the attack. Andrei Vorobyov said in a post shared on the Telegram messaging app that 20 more bodies were found beneath the rubble. The ceiling, he adds, is in danger of collapse. The Governor says rescuers will continue to scour the site for “several days” and will continue to work “round the clock”.
The attack at Crocus City Hall in Moscow, in which at least 115 people have been killed, is the deadliest in Russia since the Beslan school siege in 2004. This was when Chechen separatists took more than 1,000 hostages, the vast majority children, and more than 330 people died, including 186 children. The latest attack brought back memories of a theatre siege in the capital in 2002, when 40 Chechen militants took more than 900 people hostage during a musical called NordOst.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a media release issued yesterday said that Sri Lanka strongly condemns the dastardly terrorist attack which occurred at the Crocus City shopping center in Moscow, Russia on March 22 causing tragic loss of civilian lives and injury. Such cowardly acts of violence against civilians are abhorrent and have no place in civilized society.
The Government and the people of Sri Lanka extend their heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims, the People and the Government of the Russian Federation at this time of grief, the media release said.
Terrorism in all its forms and manifestations must be unequivocally condemned and eradicated. Sri Lanka reaffirms its commitment to the global fight against terrorism and stands ready to collaborate with the international community to address this grave threat to peace and security.
The Government of Sri Lanka wishes all those who were injured a speedy recovery, it added.
