Russia refuses to blame IS for concert hall attack despite growing evidence

The Kremlin has declined to comment on growing evidence that the Afghan branch of Islamic State (IS), known as Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), masterminded the terrorist attack on the Crocus City concert hall in Moscow that left 137 people dead.

Asked by reporters whether the Kremlin recognised IS was behind the attack, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov said: “You ask a question related to the progress of the investigation. We do not comment on that in any way. We have no right to do so. But we urge you to rely on the information provided by our law enforcement agencies.”

Reporters also asked why Vladimir Putin and Russian authorities did not mention IS as a possible organiser of the attack.

“The investigation continues. No solid theory has been announced just yet. This is only a matter of preliminary information,” Peskov said.

Putin claimed without evidence that Ukraine had aided the attackers and had planned to “open a window” for the gunmen to escape.

Although US intelligence services had previously warned that IS cells in Russia were plotting to target concert venues, Peskov said Russia’s security services had not accepted any help from the west.

“No, our security services are working on their own, no assistance is currently on the table,” he said during a telephone call with journalists.

Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, called into question assertions by the US that IS was behind the attack.

“Attention – a question to the White House: Are you sure it’s Isis? Might you think again about that?” Zakharova said in an article for the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper.

Zakharova added that the US, which has said it received intelligence that the terror group acted alone, was spreading a version of the “bogeyman” of Islamic State to cover its “wards” in Kyiv.

On Sunday, four suspects appeared in court in Moscow charged over the terrorist attack on the concert hall. The men were officially identified as citizens of Tajikistan, the Tass state news agency said, and were remanded in custody for two months.

The court released a video showing police officers bringing one of the suspects into the courtroom in handcuffs, as well as photographs of the same man sitting in a glass cage for defendants. One of the suspects was led blindfolded into the courtroom. When his blindfold was removed, a black eye was visible. Another suspect was brought into the courtroom in a wheelchair.

The men, identified as Saidakrami Murodali Rachabalizoda, Dalerdzhon Barotovich Mirzoyev, Shamsidin Fariduni and Muhammadsobir Fayzov, face charges of a “terror attack committed by a group of individuals resulting in a person’s death”, according to Tass. All four pleaded guilty.

The men were apprehended in the southern Bryansk region, where authorities said they disabled their vehicle, and caught several of the suspects as they fled into a nearby forest. New videos have been published showing Russian security forces interrogating the men, at least one of whom spoke Tajik during an interrogation. Tajikistan’s foreign ministry initially denied that the suspects were citizens of the country.

In a phone call on Sunday, Putin and Tajikistan’s president, Emomali Rahmon, “noted that security services and relevant agencies of Russia and Tajikistan are working closely in countering terrorism, and this work will be intensified”.

ISKP has previously been reported to have recruited radicalised nationals from central Asia, including Tajikistan.

Some of the videos of the interrogations suggest that the men were tortured by Russian security services. One of the clips, circulated by Russian bloggers, appears to show members of the security forces cutting off the ear of a man who is later interrogated over the attack, and stuffing it into his mouth. Another appears to show security forces beating a suspect with their rifle butts and kicking him as he lies in the snow.

Earlier on Sunday, IS released new footage of the attack, corroborating the terror group’s claim to have masterminded the atrocity, even as Russia has sought to place the blame on Ukraine, which Kyiv denies.

The incident near Moscow is the deadliest IS-claimed assault on European soil and the deadliest terror attack by any group in Russia since the 2004 Beslan siege.

Russia observed a nationwide day of mourning on Sunday, as the official number of wounded rose to 154. Russian authorities have said they expect the death toll to rise, with at least 12 victims still in critical condition.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian foreign minister called on international allies to supply more air defences to his country following a Russian missile attack on Kyiv on Monday morning.

“There are no atrocities Russian bastards would not commit, including an attempt of a ballistic strike at the heart of a multimillion city,” Dmytro Kuleba, the minister, said on X. “This is a reminder that Ukraine urgently requires more air defence, particularly Patriot systems and missiles capable of repelling any Russian attack.”

Authorities said a residential building was damaged in one district of the city, while debris from interceptions fell on other districts during the daylight attack.

Kyiv’s mayor, Vitalii Klitschko, said two women were injured.

Emergency services were on their way to the sites, officials said. Further details were not immediately available.

Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this story