Russian officials persisted in alleging Ukraine and the West played a role in last week’s fatal concert hall attack in Moscow, despite strong denials from Kyiv and the Islamic State group claiming responsibility. Without providing any proof, Alexander Bortnikov, head of Russia’s Federal Security Service, echoed President Vladimir Putin’s accusations linking the attack to Ukraine, even while conceding the arrested suspects were “radical Islamists.”
An Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for the attack, and US intelligence confirmed the group was behind it. French President Emmanuel Macron said France’s intelligence also points to an Islamic State unit being responsible. However, despite the evidence implicating ISIS, Putin insisted on Ukrainian involvement – an accusation Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected, saying the Kremlin leader was trying to stir up fervor amid Russia’s fighting in Ukraine.
Bortnikov claimed Western intelligence agencies could also have been involved in Russia’s deadliest terror attack in 20 years, even while acknowledging the US had tipped Russia off about the attack. “We believe that while radical Islamists carried out the attack, Western special services assisted it and Ukrainian special services played a direct role,” Bortnikov said without providing details. He repeated Putin’s assertion that the four detained gunmen were trying to escape to Ukraine, portraying that as proof of Kyiv’s involvement.
However, that claim was undermined by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who said the suspects were headed for Ukraine because they feared tight controls on the Belarus border. Russia is still reeling from last Friday’s attack at the Crocus City Hall concert venue near Moscow, where gunmen killed 139 people. Health officials said about 90 people remain hospitalized, with 22 of them, including two children, in critical condition.
