Russia’s FSB chief says US, Britain, Ukraine behind Moscow attack

8 months ago 30

The director of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), Alexander Bortnikov, said on Tuesday (26 March) that the United States, Britain and Ukraine were behind the Moscow concert hall attack that killed at least 139 people on Friday, state news agency TASS reported.

Ukraine has denied Russian accusations of involvement in the attack, for which the Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility. Western countries have said their intelligence indicates that ISIS-K, Islamic State’s Afghan offshoot, was responsible.

Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged on Monday that last week’s deadly attack was carried out by Islamic militants, but suggested it was also to the benefit of Ukraine and that Kyiv may have played a role.

Fresh accusations from the secretary of Russia’s security council that Kyiv was responsible for a deadly attack in Moscow on Friday are lies, senior Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak said on X.

“The lies are officially spread by (Russian security council secretary Nikolai) Patrushev, and after that by the “head of FSB” (Alexandr) Bortnikov,” Podolyak wrote in English.

Eight suspects in detention

Eight suspects have now been remanded in pre-trial detention since gunmen sprayed concertgoers with bullets in the deadliest attack in Russia in two decades.

Russia has said the four suspected gunmen have confessed, but some showed signs of injuries when they appeared in court, raising concern they had been tortured.

Russia’s commissioner for human rights said detention of suspects should be carried out in accordance with the law, TASS news agency reported, after videos were published showing the interrogation of the suspects. One had part of his ear cut off during questioning.

“It is absolutely unacceptable to use torture on detainees and defendants,” the commissioner, Tatyana Moskalkova, was quoted as saying by TASS.

Russian investigators in Tajikistan

Russian investigators were in Tajikistan on Tuesday, questioning the families of four men charged with carrying out a deadly attack on a concert hall near Moscow, three Tajik security sources told Reuters.

The sources, who were not authorised to comment publicly, said Tajik security officials had brought the families to the capital Dushanbe from the towns of Vakhdat and Gissar, and from the Rudaki district.

Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon was personally overseeing the investigation on the Tajik side, the sources said.

On Monday, making his first public comment on Friday’s attack, Rakhmon called it a “shameful and terrible event” and urged Tajiks to protect their children from harmful influences.

Four men of Tajik origin have been remanded in custody on terrorism charges, on suspicion of carrying out the attack. Three others, also of Tajik origin, were remanded on suspicion of complicity.

Islamic State has said it was responsible for the attack and has released video footage that it says shows the massacre. The group has not identified any of the attackers.

Earlier this month, Rakhmon said his government was alarmed by the activity of radical Islamist preachers who were “brainwashing” Tajik youths, making them susceptible to manipulation by foreign groups and intelligence agencies.

The former Soviet republic of 10 million is a close ally of Moscow and hosts a Russian military base; its economy depends heavily on remittances from more than a million Tajik migrant labourers working in Russia.

According to the Russian authorities, at least two of the suspects have confessed to taking part in the attack.

The shootings have strengthened anti-immigrant sentiments in Russia, while videos which appeared to show the suspects being tortured prompted a divided reaction. Russia’s commissioner for human rights has called the use of torture against detainees unacceptable. Russian authorities have said they are investigating.

(Edited by Georgi Gotev)