MOSCOW: A senior Russian security official on Tuesday accused Ukraine and its Western backers for terrorist attack on a Moscow concert hall that left at least 139 people dead last week.
The accusation from the secretary of Russia’s powerful Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, comes after the Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the attack — the most deadly on Russian territory in over two decades.
Despite IS’s claims and assertions from US intelligence, Russia has sought to deflect blame for the tragedy onto Ukraine, which has vehemently denied any involvement with the attackers.
Patrushev stated that it is necessary to answer the question: Why did the terrorists attempt to go to Ukraine after the attack? Who was waiting for them there? (AFP reported)
Without providing any evidence, Putin linked the attack at Crocus City Hall to a series of incursions into Russia by pro-Ukrainian sabotage groups, stating that they were all part of efforts to “sow panic in our society.”
Massacre in Russia After Elections
The concert hall massacre was a major blow for President Putin just over a week after he claimed a new tenure after elections the Kremlin billed as an endorsement of his military operation against Ukraine.
A senior aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday again denied his country’s involvement and instead blamed the “incompetence” of the the security services of Russia.
The Kremlin has expressed confidence in the country’s powerful security agencies, despite questions swirling over how they failed to thwart the attack despite public and private warnings from the US.
