Moscow Concert Attack Leaves Over 60 Dead in Islamic State Massacre

A Moscow concert attack on Friday night left at least 60 people dead and 145 wounded, with around 60 of the injured in critical condition. The attack was the deadliest incident in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege, where Islamist militants took over 1,000 hostages, including hundreds of children. Russian investigators found Kalashnikov rifles, ammunition vests, and piles of spent casings at the Moscow concert attack site.

The Islamic State militant group swiftly claimed responsibility for the massacre during the Moscow concert attack. In a statement on Telegram, IS said its fighters “killed and wounded hundreds” before safely withdrawing from the attack. A U.S. official confirmed intelligence corroborating the claim of the Moscow concert attack, adding that Washington had recently warned Moscow about a potential attack.

Despite Russia having yet to assign blame for the Moscow concert attack, Maria Zakharova, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, condemned the “bloody terrorist attack” and called on the world to denounce it. The U.N. Security Council also strongly condemned the “heinous and cowardly terrorist attack” of the Moscow concert attack.

The history of threats preceding the Moscow concert attack includes warnings from the U.S. embassy in Russia of imminent attack plans by extremists in Moscow and thwarting an ISIS-Khorasan plot to attack a synagogue in the capital before the attack. The broader Islamic State has carried out deadly strikes worldwide, including in Europe and former Soviet republics, before the Moscow concert attack.

After the Moscow concert attack, Russia tightened security across the capital region and cancelled all large public events nationwide. President Putin received constant updates as the situation unfolded and gave orders to relevant agencies. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin expressed condolences, calling the Moscow concert event “a tragedy.” Ukrainian officials denied any involvement as Russia investigates the Islamic State’s latest and most deadly strike on its soil through the Moscow concert attack.