Russia to observe national day of mourning as concert hall massacre toll hits 133

NEW DELHI: In the wake of the deadliest terrorist attacks in decades that claimed over 130 lives, Russia on Sunday will observe a national day of mourning.

In the fatal attack, the responsibility of which has been taken by the Islamic State (IS) group, a few camouflage-clad men entered a Crocus City Mall on the outskirts of the capital Moscow and opened fire on the crowd, leaving over 100 wounded.

Hours after the incident, the authorities detained all four assailants among 11 others who according to Russia were trying to head towards the Ukrainian border.

The attack, seen as the bloodiest by the Islamic State group in Europe, comes days after Russian President Vladimir Putin cemented his position in the Kremlin after massive victory in Presidential polls.

Putin has vowed to punish those behind the "barbaric terrorist attack", saying four gunmen trying to flee to Ukraine had been arrested.

Kyiv has distanced itself from the attack, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accusing Putin of trying to shift the blame onto them.

"What happened yesterday in Moscow is obvious," Zelenskyy said. "Putin and the other scum are just trying to blame it on someone else."

The Islamic State group wrote on Telegram Saturday that the attack was "carried out by four IS fighters armed with machine guns, a pistol, knives and firebombs," as part of "the raging war" with "countries fighting Islam".



Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said rescue workers were still pulling bodies from the burnt-out building on Saturday.

The emergency situations ministry has so far named 29 of the victims, the blaze has complicated the process of identification.

The ministry posted a video Sunday of heavy equipment arriving at the scene of the fire to dismantle damaged structures and clear debris.

'Terrorist act'

"Terrorists, murderers, non-humans ... have only one unenviable fate: retribution and oblivion," Putin said in his televised address Saturday.

Calling the attack a "barbaric, terrorist act", he said "all four direct perpetrators ... all those who shot and killed people, have been found and detained".

"They tried to escape and were travelling towards Ukraine, where, according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the state border," said Putin.

At least 133 people were killed when camouflaged gunmen stormed the Crocus City Hall, in Moscow's northern suburb of Krasnogorsk, and then set fire to the building on Friday evening.
(With AFP inputs)