On Friday Evening, 4 gunmen killed 133 people (as of Afternoon of the 23rd) and further injured 140. The attack took place in Crocus City Hall in West Moscow, which is a large concert hall with approximately 6,000 seats.
Who Carried out the attack?
4 Individuals were arrested in Bryansk, 340 Kilometres to the South-West of Moscow. These individuals are allegedly Tajikistani Nationals, a Muslim country in central-Asia to the North of Afghanistan. Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack but has not disclosed which regional branch of ISIS carried out the attack. Despite this, it is most likely that the ISIS-K branch carried out the attack.
Why was the attack carried out?
Terrorist attacks seek to convey ideological messages via violent means. The attack, carried out by ISIS-K, happened because ISIS-K sees the Russian government as one of the many governments that “seek to oppress Muslims”.
A similar attack took place in Russia 22 years ago. Chechen Terrorists took control of a theatre in Moscow, resulting in the death of 300 people.
What happens now?
We can expect the tightening of security in train stations, airports, and shopping centers in St. Petersburg and Moscow. Sunday the 24th of March will be a national day of mourning in memory of those killed in the attack.
Cover Image – https://www.aljazeera.com