‘ISIS’ attack: “Ukraine involved”
Ukrainian military intelligence was directly involved in the Moscow Crocus concert hall terrorist attack, which killed over 140 people. That’s Moscow’s latest accusation. This time from the Director of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) Alexander Bortnikov, TASS reported. The FSB is the main successor body of the erstwhile Soviet Union’s KGB. Russia has made such allegations before. Bortnikov did not provide evidence. “The investigation is ongoing, but it is already safe to say that Ukrainian military intelligence is directly involved in this attack,” the state news agency quoted Bortnikov as saying.
‘ISIS’ attack: “Ukraine involved”, U.S. Denies
He also accused the NATO military alliance of facilitating the transfer of “mercenaries and militants of international terrorist organisations from the Middle East, North Africa and, Afghanistan” to Ukraine. This he said is so that they could fight against Russian forces there. The ‘Islamic State’ terrorist group (also known as Daesh, ISIS-K, ISKP or ‘ISIS”)Â claimed responsibility for the concert hall massacre in March. U.S. officials have said they had intelligence showing it was carried out by the network’s Afghan branch, Islamic State Khorasan. Ukraine has repeatedly denied it had anything to do with the attack.
TASS cited Bortnikov as saying that Islamic State Khorasan had played a role in coordinating the attackers’ actions. And Ukrainian military intelligence had also played a direct role.
Four gunmen carried out the mass shooting and slashing attacks on March 22, 2024. They then used incendiary devices to set the venue on fire. Russian authorities arrested and charged four men for the attack. Moscow says all four are Tajik.
Prior Warnings From Other Countries
Katherine Brucker, the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to the Special Permanent Council of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) delivered a statement in Vienna on April 11, 2024. She said, “Contrary to public statements by President Putin and others who have sought to shift blame onto Ukraine, the United States, the United Kingdom, and any other entity that suits the Kremlin’s political narratives, it is abundantly clear that ISIS-K was solely responsible for the horrific terrorist attack in Moscow on the 22nd.”
She added, “Despite what the Kremlin says, and despite what our Russian colleague has said, the United States, in fact, tried to help prevent this terrorist attack. The Kremlin knows this. Weeks before the March 22nd attack, the United States government provided clear, detailed information to Russian authorities. This was regarding the terrorist threat against large gatherings and concerts in Moscow. On March 7th, the United States passed a warning to Russian security services. In addition, we released a public advisory on March 8th warning American citizens to avoid large gatherings and concerts in Moscow. While our Embassy’s public advisory might have deterred ISIS-K from attacking on March 8th, our warning to the Russian government accurately identified the terrorist threat posed to concerts in Moscow.”
(With Reuters Inputs)
