Radical Islamists’ carried out Moscow terror attack – Putin

President Vladimir Putin asserted that radical Islamists carried out the Crocus City Hall attack, pointing to Ukraine as a potential orchestrator. Despite US and allied claims attributing the incident to Islamic State (IS), Putin affirmed knowledge of the perpetrators while urging an investigation into those behind the assault. Seven suspects, identified as ethnic Tajiks, were apprehended en route to Ukraine, raising questions about potential accomplices. While the US and EU absolve Ukraine of involvement, Putin calls for a thorough, politically unbiased probe to uncover the attack’s mastermind.

The US and its allies are now trying to cover for their proxies in Kiev, insisting that Ukraine had nothing to do with the terrorist attack and that the party responsible was Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS), the Russian president noted.

“But we know who carried out the attack. We want to know who ordered it.”

Russian law enforcement is currently looking into the perpetrators, who have been apprehended and brought before a judge. The investigation must be “professional, without any political bias,” Putin said.

More than 130 people were killed at the concert venue northwest of Moscow on Friday evening, when several armed men began shooting into the crowd and set the hall on fire. A terrorist group calling itself Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) has claimed responsibility.

Russian security services detained seven alleged perpetrators, who were driving towards Ukraine, as well as four of their suspected accomplices. The men were identified as ethnic Tajiks.

Putin noted that the fact the terrorists were headed for Ukraine posed questions that needed answering.

“Who was waiting for them there? It is clear that those who support the Kiev regime do not want to be accomplices and sponsors of terrorism. But a lot of questions remain,” he said.

The US and the EU swiftly insisted that Ukraine had nothing to do with the attack and that IS – a shadowy group allegedly operating in Afghanistan and Central Asia – was the sole culprit.