The attackers opened fire at the time of the attack (French)
The day before yesterday, Friday, gunmen carried out a bloody attack on the "Crocus" concert hall in the suburb of Krasnogorsk, northwest of the Russian capital, Moscow, killing at least 143 people and wounding about 152, according to the Russian Investigative Committee.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to accounts on social media sites that the organization usually uses.
Below are the most prominent circumstances and details of the attack:
Attack scene
The attack occurred in a concert hall in the Crocus shopping center west of the sprawling Russian capital, Moscow, which houses about 12 million people.
The center is located in Krasnogorsk, about 20 kilometers west of the Presidential Residence (Kremlin) and along the Moscow Ring Road.
The center's concert hall opened in 2009 and is a popular entertainment venue with a capacity of 6,200 people.
Former US President Donald Trump once held the Miss Universe contest in the hall.
Details of the attack
The attack began Friday evening as people were taking their seats for a sold-out show by Picnic, a popular Soviet-era rock band.
Five men wearing military uniform entered the concert hall and opened fire on those inside.
An eyewitness, Dave Primov, told the Associated Press that chaos ensued as soon as the shooting occurred.
Primov: There was a hail of bullets. We all got up and tried to move towards the corridors. Panic began and everyone ran and bumped into each other. Some fell and others trampled them.
Russian investigators said that at least 143 people were killed and more than 152 others were injured in one of the worst attacks the country has witnessed in decades.
The attackers threw explosives that ignited a massive fire that at one point covered an area of up to 12,900 square metres, according to Russia's Interfax news agency.
Graphic videos posted on social media platforms showed the militants firing repeatedly as they entered the building, shooting people at close range.
Another video clip showed a man in the hall saying that the attackers had set it on fire. Helicopters intervened to put out the fire from the air, while firefighters were fighting the flames from the ground. The fire was eventually brought under control early Saturday.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations said firefighters helped about 100 people escape through the building's basement, while rescue operations also began for people trapped on the roof.
Members of the Picnic band were unharmed and evacuated safely, TASS news agency said.
Chase the attackers
The Russian Investigative Committee, the highest government criminal investigation agency, opened a "terrorist" investigation into the attack, and the National Guard was among the units deployed to search for the militants.
Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Russian Security Council and a main ally of President Vladimir Putin: The Moscow attack shows how serious the terrorist threat is to Russia.
Politician Alexander Khenshtin, citing "preliminary information": At least two suspects were arrested in the Bryansk region, about 340 kilometers southwest of Moscow, after a car chase. The other suspects fled into a nearby forest and are being pursued.
The Kremlin did not immediately blame anyone for the attack, but some Russian politicians were quick to blame Ukraine.
Mykhaylo Podolyak, an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, denied Ukraine's involvement. "Ukraine has never resorted to the use of terrorist methods. Everything in this war will be decided only on the battlefield," he wrote on the X website.
ISIS adopts
The Islamic State of Khorasan Province, an Afghan affiliate of the group, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement published by its Amaq news agency.
Amaq said that its fighters did so and attacked the suburbs of Moscow, killing and wounding hundreds, and causing great destruction in the place before they withdrew to their bases unharmed.
Russia has reported several incidents involving ISIS this month, with Russia's intelligence service saying on March 7 that it had thwarted an ISIS attack on a synagogue in Moscow.
The United States said it had also warned of the growing threat posed by “extremists” with imminent plans to attack “large gatherings” in Moscow, and it shared that finding with the Russians. An American official said, on Friday evening, that Washington has intelligence information confirming that ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack on Crocus City Hall.
Experts said the organization has opposed Putin in recent years.
“ISIS-K has been focused on Russia over the past two years, and has often criticized Putin in its propaganda,” said Colin Clark of the Soufan Center, a Washington-based research group.
ISIS-K “sees Russia as complicit in activities that regularly persecute Muslims,” said Michael Kugelman of the Washington, D.C.-based Wilson Center.
What did Putin say?
All those responsible for the Moscow attack will be identified and punished. He added, "All the perpetrators and organizers of this crime will inevitably face just punishment."
No matter who they are or who was directing them, we will identify and punish whoever was behind this terrorist attack.
The attackers tried to flee towards Ukraine.
Preliminary information showed that some people in Ukraine are willing to let them cross the border from Russia.
Sunday was declared a national day of mourning.
Previous attacks targeting Russia?
In October 2015, a bomb planted by ISIS exploded on a Russian airliner over the Sinai Desert, killing all 224 people on board, most of them Russians returning from holidays in Egypt.
The country was also rocked by a series of deadly attacks in the early 2000s.
In September 2004, about 30 Chechen fighters seized a school in Beslan, southern Russia, and took hundreds of people hostage.
The siege ended two days later in a bloodbath, with more than 330 people killed, nearly half of them children.
In October 2002, Chechen fighters stormed a theater in Moscow and took about 800 people hostage in the hall.
Russian special forces began an operation to rescue the prisoners two days later, first subduing the attackers with anesthetic gas.
Some 41 Chechens were killed, as well as 129 hostages, most of them from the effects of the gas.
International reactions
Chinese President Xi Jinping sent his "condolences" to Putin. He stressed that China opposes all forms of terrorism, strongly condemns the terrorist attack, and strongly supports the Russian government's efforts to protect its national security and stability.
White House spokesman John Kirby said, "The images are horrific and difficult to watch, and our thoughts will be with the victims of this horrific attack."
The European Union said it was "shocked and appalled" by the attack. A spokesman for the European Union said, "The European Union condemns any attacks against civilians. Our thoughts are with all affected Russian citizens."
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on the X platform, "We strongly condemn the heinous terrorist attack in Moscow. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims. India stands in solidarity with the government and people of the Russian Federation in this hour of grief."
French President Emmanuel Macron said in a statement issued by the Elysee Palace that he "strongly condemns the terrorist attack claimed by the Islamic State." He added, "France expresses its solidarity with the victims, their loved ones, and the entire Russian people."
Other countries that condemned the attack included Germany, Afghanistan, Norway, Cuba, Italy, Japan, Venezuela, Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Malaysia.
Source: Al Jazeera