Moscow concert hall attack: Islamic State claims responsibility as death toll rises to 60 – latest updates

Why would ISIS be attacking Russia?

The attack by ISIS-K in Russia on Friday is being described as a dramatic escalation, according to Reuters.

Experts have said the group has opposed Russian president Vladimir Putin in recent years.

For some background, Putin changed the course of the Syrian civil war by intervening in 2015, supporting president Bashar al-Assad against the opposition and Islamic State.

Colin Clarke of Soufan Center, a Washington-based research group, said:

ISIS-K has been fixated on Russia for the past two years, frequently criticizing Putin in its propaganda.

ISIS-K, in full is Islamic State Khorasan.

The group is named after an old term for the region that included parts of Iran, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, and emerged in eastern Afghanistan in late 2014, quickly establishing a reputation for extreme brutality, as per Reuters.

There is also a Caucasus branch of ISIS.

The broader Islamic State group has claimed deadly attacks across the Middle East, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Europe, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.

We will have a more in-depth explainer coming shortly.

Investigations underway at Crocus City Hall

Russia’s investigative committee has published footage of investigators working at the scene after the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall, on the western edge of Moscow.

The unknown people who carried out the terrorist attack in Crocus were armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, RIA News is reporting.

Here are screenshots of the video released by Russia’s investigative committee on Saturday.

RIA News has shared a full statement from the Russian Investigative Committee regarding updates to the terrorist attack in Crocus:

• Investigators, criminologists and experts from the Investigative Committee of Russia, together with the operational units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB, continue investigative actions at the scene of the incident.

• The bodies of the dead are being examined. It has been previously established that more than 60 people died as a result of the terrorist attack. Unfortunately, the number of victims may increase.

• Material evidence, including weapons and ammunition, is confiscated from the crime scene, all necessary examinations are ordered and carried out, including genetic, ballistic, and fingerprint examinations.

• CCTV footage is being confiscated and studied.

Putin wishes victims ‘speedy recovery’, deputy PM says

At least 60 dead, Russia’s Investigative Committee says

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said it was a “bloody terrorist attack” that the entire world should condemn, according to AFP.

Zakharova wrote on Telegram earlier:

The entire world community must condemn this despicable crime!

French president Emmanuel Macron condemned the attack on Friday at a concert hall near Moscow, calling it a “terrorist attack”, according to Reuters.

Macron, in a statement, said he “firmly condemns this terrorist attack, claimed by the Islamic State”.

He said in the statement that France stands in solidarity with the victims of the shooting.

This is Claire Keenan taking over from my colleague Maanvi Singh.

The US has intelligence confirming the Islamic State’s claim taking responsibility for the attack, according to Reuters. The agency cites an unnamed US official:

The official said the United States had warned Russia in recent weeks about the possibility of an attack.

‘We did warn the Russians appropriately,’ said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, without providing any additional details.

At least 40 people were killed and 145 wounded on Friday when camouflage-clad gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons on concertgoers near Moscow in one of the deadliest attacks on Russia in decades.

Islamic State, the militant group that once sought control over swathes of Iraq and Syria, claimed responsibility for the attack, the group’s Amaq agency said on Telegram.

The death toll made it one of the worst attacks on Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege, when Islamist militants took more than 1,000 people hostage, including hundreds of children.

The death toll has risen to 62, Russia’s Baza news outlet has reported based on preliminary information. The Guardian has not confirmed the number and will be watching for updates from the health ministry.

Russia’s president Vladimir Putin has yet to make a public comment on the attacks. The Kremlin has said he is receiving regular updates.

UN secretary general condemns attack in ‘strongest possible terms’

As the Russian national guard continues to secure the area, Russians have begun to mourn those who died in the attack.

People at the concert describe a chaotic scene as the attack began.

Alexei, a music producer, told AFP he had been about to settle into his seat before the concert, when he heard “several machine gun bursts” and “a lot of screams”.

“I realised right away that it was automatic gunfire and understood that most likely it’s the worst: a terrorist attack,” he said.

Another witness told Reuters that a stampede began as everyone rushed away from the gunfire. “A stampede began. Everyone ran to the escalator,” the witness said. “Everyone was screaming, everyone was running.”

CNN’s chief national security correspondent writes that sources have revealed that there may have been specific intelligence indicating an imminent attack.

Isis-K refers to the Islamic State of Khorasan Province, active in south-central Asia.The Islamic State appears to have taken credit for the attack via a Telegram post.

145 people injured in attack, says Moscow health ministry

At least two children have been wounded in the attack at the Crocus City Hall, according to Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova.

Lvova-Belova, in an interview aired by Russia’s state-owned Rossiya-24 channel, said:

There are wounded children, not many of them so far. There is a boy with a gunshot wound, but all are in a moderately grave condition so far … There is a boy who was struck with the buttstock of a rifle, in a stable condition.

The Russian national guard have completed an inspection of the parking lots around the Crocus City Hall and have found no explosives, a Russian MP has said.

In a Telegram post, lawmaker Alexander Khinshtein added that members of the national guard are continuing their checks of the surrounding area.

The European Union is “shocked and appalled” by the reports of a terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall, the bloc’s lead foreign affairs spokesperson Peter Stano has said.

Posting to social media, Stano said the EU “condemns any attacks against civilians”.

The British embassy in Russia has said it condemns the attack at the Crocus City Hall, calling it a “terrible tragedy” and adding:

We express our sincere condolences to the families and friends of those affected and killed by today’s events.