- Monday, February 24, 2025
The horrific incident took place just days after Vladimir Putin won his fifth presidential term and celebrated the 10th anniversary of Russia annexing Crimea.
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi, who recently congratulated the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, over his victory in elections that secured his record fifth term in office, on Friday (22) condemned the attack at a concert hall in Moscow that resulted in deaths of more than 60 people and injuries to over 100.
He said in a social media post that New Delhi condemned the “heinous terror attack” and that his country “stands in solidarity with the government”.
“We strongly condemn the heinous terrorist attack in Moscow. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims. India stands in solidarity with the government and the people of the Russian Federation in this hour of grief,” Modi wrote on X.
Read: More than 60 killed in Russia concert hall terror attack
We strongly condemn the heinous terrorist attack in Moscow. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims. India stands in solidarity with the government and the people of the Russian Federation in this hour of grief.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 23, 2024
The Islamic Group militant outfit claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement which was revealed on affiliated channels on social media. One American intelligence officials told The Associated Press that US intelligence agencies had learned that the outfit’s chapter in Afghanistan was planning to carry out an attack in the Russian capital and shared the information with officials at the Kremlin.
According to the AFP, Washington had warned Russian authorities earlier this month about terrorists possibly targeting “large gatherings” in Moscow, the White House said Friday, hours after the mass shooting happened.
The horrific attack, which saw the concert hall go up in flames and its roof crumbling, was the deadliest that Russia has witnessed in years and came as the country’s military invasion in Ukraine entered its third year.
The attack also comes just days after Putin’s electoral victory and his celebrating the moment on the 10th anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea. He said the peninsula is part of the history, traditions and pride of the people of Russia. The country’s forces seized Crimea in 2014 although most world leaders still consider it to be a part of Ukraine. The Russian forces have used the peninsula to deliver supply to the ongoing war in the east European nation.
The attack at the concert hall took place as people gathered for a performance by Picnic, a Russian rock band. Videos showed the building on fire and a huge cloud of smoke rising through the night sky. Fire trucks, ambulances and other emergency vehicles rushed to the spot while helicopters buzzed overhead to spray water on the blaze but it took hours to contain it.
Moscow’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin called the raid a “huge tragedy.”
The Investigative Committee of Russia, the country’s top state criminal investigation agency, reported early Saturday (17) that more than 60 people were dead in the attack. Health authorities said 145 were injured of whom 115 were hospitalised. They included five children.
Several other countries also condemned the attack.
