{"id":8975,"date":"2024-03-25T00:26:18","date_gmt":"2024-03-25T00:26:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/25\/in-russia-fingers-point-anywhere-but-at-isis-for-concert-hall-attack\/"},"modified":"2024-03-25T00:26:18","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T00:26:18","slug":"in-russia-fingers-point-anywhere-but-at-isis-for-concert-hall-attack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/25\/in-russia-fingers-point-anywhere-but-at-isis-for-concert-hall-attack\/","title":{"rendered":"In Russia, Fingers Point Anywhere but at ISIS for Concert Hall Attack"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1050\" height=\"550\" src=\"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/03\/24\/multimedia\/24moscow-attack-ledeall-qzhk\/24moscow-attack-ledeall-qzhk-facebookJumbo.jpg?resize=1050,550&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"In Russia, Fingers Point Anywhere but at ISIS for Concert Hall Attack\" title=\"In Russia, Fingers Point Anywhere but at ISIS for Concert Hall Attack\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Bodies were recovered, flowers were laid and fingers were pointed on Sunday as competing narratives took shape over who was behind the terrorist attack on a Russian concert hall where at least 137 people out to enjoy an evening of music were killed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">President Vladimir V. Putin <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/03\/23\/world\/europe\/moscow-attack-putin.html\" title=\"\">has hinted<\/a> that Ukraine was behind the Friday night attack. He stopped short of accusing Kyiv directly, but on Sunday, some of his allies showed no such compunction.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">American officials have said that the attack appeared to be the work of an offshoot of the Islamic State, and that there is no evidence connecting Kyiv to it. But many Russian nationalist commentators and ultraconservative hawks are pushing the idea that Ukraine is the obvious culprit.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">A pro-Kremlin analyst who is a regular on Russian state television, Sergei A. Markov, wrote in <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/logikamarkova\/10971\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">a post<\/a> on Telegram that the Kremlin must work at isolating the Ukrainian leadership by \u201cconnecting the terrorist act not with ISIS but with the Ukrainian government as much as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Russian state news outlets barely mentioned that ISIS itself claimed that the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/03\/24\/world\/europe\/isis-k-moscow-attack.html\" title=\"\">Islamic State Khorasan<\/a> was responsible for the attack at Crocus City Hall, a concert venue in the outskirts of Moscow. The group, which is known as ISIS-K, has been active in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Late Sunday, four men who appeared to have been badly beaten appeared in a Russian courtroom and were charged with committing a terrorist attack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Three of the men told the court they were from Tajikistan, and according to Russian news outlets, the fourth suspect is, too. The Islamic State has attracted thousands of adherents from countries in Central Asia, including Tajikistan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">All four suspects had visible bruising, and one had bandages on his head. Another had to be wheeled in and out of the courtroom. Videos purporting to show the men being brutalized while under interrogation have been circulating widely on Russian social media.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Sunday, a spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria V. Zakharova, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/MariaVladimirovnaZakharova\/7663\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a> that the West was pointing at ISIS-K to shift the blame away from Ukraine. Russia has not presented any evidence of Ukraine\u2019s involvement, and Ukrainian officials have dismissed the accusations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">So has the Biden administration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThere is no, whatsoever, any evidence \u2014 and, in fact, what we know to be the case is that ISIS-K is actually by all accounts responsible for what happened,\u201d Vice President Kamala Harris said Sunday on ABC\u2019s \u201cThis Week.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The reactions to the attack reflect in part the state of anxiety that Russia has been living in since its forces invaded Ukraine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">For the past two years, propaganda outlets have been competing to advance one narrative, conspiracy theory or bit of speculation after another, and now some analysts and Kremlin critics say that Mr. Putin might falsely pin the attack on Kyiv to justify another escalation in his war.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On Saturday, Mr. Putin pledged to punish the perpetrators \u2014 \u201cwhoever they may be, whoever may have sent them.\u201d He made no mention of ISIS-K.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Russia was observing a national day of mourning on Sunday for victims of the fiery attack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Under a gray sky, stunned Russians came to lay flowers and light candles at a memorial set up outside the concert hall. Scores of people waited in a long line for their turn, many clutching red bouquets, as work continued inside the hall to dismantle the remains of the stage. Flags were lowered to half-staff at buildings across the country, and state media released a video of Mr. Putin lighting a memorial candle in a church.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">A top Russian law-enforcement body, the Investigative Committee, said Sunday that 137 bodies had been recovered from the charred premises, including those of three children. It said that 62 victims had been identified so far and that genetic testing was underway to identify the rest. Many of the more than 100 people wounded in the attack were in critical condition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The names of the men described as the four main suspects were released as they were brought into court to be charged. A court spokesman identified them as Dalerjon Mirzoyev, 32; Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, 30; Shamsidin Fariduni, 25; and Muhammadsobir Fayzov, 19.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In a Russia shaken by the worst terrorist attack to hit it in more than two decades, it was not just Ukraine that was <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2024\/03\/24\/world\/moscow-russia-attack-news#putin-russia-moscow-attack\" title=\"\">coming under scrutiny<\/a>. Some commentators did criticize Russian security services for failing to prevent the tragedy, and there were open questions about whether Russia had adequately followed up on a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/03\/22\/world\/europe\/moscow-concert-attack-us-embassy.html?searchResultPosition=10\" title=\"\">warning from the United States<\/a> about the threat of an attack.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Conspiracy theories abounded.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Hard-line anti-Kremlin activists, speaking from abroad, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=39SPo7PC0xM\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">speculated<\/a> that the Russian state could have orchestrated the attack so that it could blame Ukraine or further tighten the screws of repression inside the country.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Some lawmakers in Parliament were <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/ria.ru\/20240324\/migranty-1935398733.html\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">already arguing<\/a> that the government needed to get tough on migrants. Lawmakers also <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/rian_ru\/237617\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">pledged<\/a> to discuss whether capital punishment should be introduced in Russia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Aleksei Venediktov, a Russian journalist and commentator and the former editor of the influential Ekho Moskvy radio station said that \u201cdifferent political forces are starting to use\u201d the attack. \u201cThe Kremlin, most of all,\u201d he <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=PGuB-Bansfo\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">said in an interview<\/a> broadcast on YouTube. \u201cBut others too, who say that it was all organized by the Kremlin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Some nationalist activists said that disorientation could have been the attackers\u2019 ultimate goal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Yegor S. Kholmogorov, a Russian nationalist commentator, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/holmogortalks\/33181\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">wrote<\/a> in his blog on the Telegram messaging app that Russian society was \u201cstrongly united by the war and President Vladimir V. Putin\u2019s victory in the election\u201d before the attack. Now, he lamented, Russia has turned into a \u201csociety that is split.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">As Russia mourned, the war in Ukraine carried on.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ukraine\u2019s air force said it had shot down 43 out of 57 Russian missiles and drones launched overnight against different parts of the country. And Ukraine\u2019s military said it had struck two large landing ships that were part of Russia\u2019s Black Sea Fleet. There was no immediate comment from Russia military officials.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-798hid etfikam0\">Neil MacFarquhar<!-- --> and <!-- -->Matthew Mpoke Bigg<!-- --> contributed reporting.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bodies were recovered, flowers were laid and fingers were pointed on Sunday as competing narratives took shape over who was behind the terrorist attack on a Russian concert hall where at least 137 people out to enjoy an evening of music were killed. President Vladimir V. Putin has hinted that Ukraine was behind the Friday [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8976,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/03\/24\/multimedia\/24moscow-attack-ledeall-qzhk\/24moscow-attack-ledeall-qzhk-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2601,840,13835,7435,11098,6778,202],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8975"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8975"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8975\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8977,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8975\/revisions\/8977"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}