Russian Security Service confirms Ukrainian intelligence 'directly involved' in Moscow terror attack
(Baonghean.vn) - Director of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) Aleksandr Bortnikov said that more than 20 people have been detained in connection with the attack at the Crocus City Hall theater.
Specifically, RT reported on May 24 that FSB head Aleksandr Bortnikov said that Ukrainian military intelligence directly participated in the deadly terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall theater just outside the Russian capital Moscow in March.
He added that the investigation into the attack was still ongoing, but all indications were that Ukraine was behind it.
“The investigation is ongoing, but we can say with certainty that Ukrainian military intelligence was directly involved in this attack,” Bortnikov said at a meeting of heads of special services of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
The preparation and financing of the attack, as well as the terrorists' subsequent escape from the scene, were coordinated via the internet by members of Wilayat Khorasan, also known as the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) - Khorasan, or ISIS-K, Bortnikov revealed.
He added that two of the four criminals involved had traveled from Türkiye to Russia shortly before the attack. He asserted that after the attack, “the terrorists received clear orders to move to the Ukrainian border, where a ‘window’ had been prepared for them.”
RT said that the results of the investigation apparently confirmed the FSB’s initial assessment that Ukraine was behind the attack. In April, the FSB chief said that Ukrainian security services could have been involved in preparing the attack, possibly using Islamists as proxies. Bortnikov stressed that “all the circumstances of the crime will be clearly established” and that those involved in the “heinous” terrorist attack “will not go unpunished.”
“We are currently fully identifying those involved in the massacre. More than 20 people have been detained, including the direct perpetrators and accomplices,” he said. Bortnikov added that “colleagues from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan” were assisting the FSB investigation.
The attack on a concert venue just outside Moscow on March 22 killed more than 140 people and injured more than 550. Four gunmen stormed the building, shooting everyone in sight before setting it on fire.
Kiev has denied any involvement in the attack, while Western countries supporting Ukraine have said all evidence points to ISIS-K. The group has also claimed responsibility for the attack.
