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At Least 133 Killed in Moscow Shooting, Islamic State Claims Responsibility
Members of the Russian Emergencies Ministry clear rubble at the Crocus City Hall concert venue after a deadly attack, outside Moscow, Russia, March 23, 2024. Photo: Russian Emergencies Ministry/Handout via REUTERS
i24 News – Moscow Friday evening saw the nation’s largest terrorist attack in over 10 years, with at least 133 confirmed killed, including three children, and over 140 wounded.
Islamic State claimed responsibility after a squad of gunmen in combat gear opened fire and reportedly set off explosives at Crocus City Hall, a concert hall just outside of the capital. Over 600 people are said to have donated blood for the victims of the attack.
This is what “Crocus City Hall” in Moscow looks now
Rosgvardiya completed the search of parking lots, no explosives and devices were found.
A new group of special forces entered Crocus City Hall. pic.twitter.com/sM0xCeW7WV
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 22, 2024
The attack was followed by evacuation of malls nationwide and security enforcement at the airports and train stations. The weekend’s mass events have been canceled in Moscow and other regions of the country.
At around 11:00 a.m. local time Russian police are said to have captured two suspects. Security forces chased a car with suspects that then overturned, allowing the rest of the alleged squad to escape in the forest, Rosgvardia spokesperson and the Russian Duma depute Alexander Khinshtein said. During the operation, fire exchange was reported.
Later Russian internal intelligence FSB chief Alexander Bortnikov reported to Putin that 11 people have been detained, including 4 suspected terrorists, said the Kremlin statement.
FSB claimed that the suspects planned to cross the Russia-Ukraine border and had “relevant contacts” in Ukraine.
According to the FSB, the terrorists involved in the attack at Crocus City Hall attempted to flee toward the Russian-Ukrainian border
— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) March 23, 2024
According to a Russian oppositional media outlet Meduza citing its sources in the government, the Kremlin has distributed instructions to the state-controlled media to highlight presence of the “possible Ukrainian trace” in the incident reporting.
Russian President Vladimir Putin broke the silence 20 hours after the tragedy, vowing to provide help to all those who suffered in the attack. He echoed the claim that the gunmen were moving towards Ukraine.
“Our common duty now is to be together in one ranks. No one will be able to sow panic and discord in our society,” stated Putin.
Крупнейший теракт в Москве. Теракт, о котором предупреждали. Но ФСБ были слишком заняты борьбой с политиками, активистами и журналистами. На террористов времени не хватило.
pic.twitter.com/YQGKrzc0Xz
— Maria Pevchikh (@pevchikh) March 22, 2024
If it is established that the terrorist attack was carried out by “terrorists of the Kyiv regime,” it is impossible to deal with them and “their ideological inspirers” differently, added Medvedev.
Security officers are storming the Crocus City Hall building where several attackers have barricaded themselves.
: Beware, News pic.twitter.com/ypNuf1Z6D2
— Novaya Gazeta Europe (@novayagazeta_en) March 22, 2024
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak promptly reacted to the allegations: “Let’s be straight about this: Ukraine had absolutely nothing to do with these events.”
“We have a full-scale, all-out war with the Russian regular army and with the Russian Federation as a country. And regardless of everything, everything will be decided on the battlefield,” he added.
A representative of a pro-Ukraine Russian armed group Freedom of Russia Legion told Novaya Gazeta Europe: “It obviously wasn’t us.”
Photos from the scene of the terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall building pic.twitter.com/9afx4RFSzj
— S p r i n t e r F a c t o r y (@Sprinterfactory) March 23, 2024
Some also drew attention the fact that on March 8, the United States warned about the possibility of a terrorist attacks in Russia within 48 hours. Putin then labeled it as “blackmail.”
After the incident, Washington denied having intelligence on any specific terrorist plans. “The images are just horrible and just hard to watch, and our thoughts obviously are going to be with the victims of this terrible, terrible shooting attack,” said the White House spokesperson John Kirby.
According to reports citing a U.S. official, American intelligence could confirm the Islamic State was behind the attack.
U.S. Republican Senator Mitt Romney also said: “The intentional targeting and murder of civilians is vile and evil regardless of the perpetrators – Putin against Ukrainians and terrorists against the Russians. Today’s massacre in Moscow is tragic.”
Germany, France, Italy, Japan, India, Georgia Venezuela, Cuba and other countries as well as Afghanistan’s Taliban all condemned the attack and expressed their condolences to the victims.
The death toll in the Moscow Crocus City Hall terror attack has reportedly risen to 62, Russian forces are working to recover bodies from the unburnt portions of the building.
Multiple people reportedly died from smoke inhalation after being trapped by the fire. pic.twitter.com/pUK4pIy0XZ
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 22, 2024
Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said: “All those involved in this crime must be found and brought to justice.”
The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned “in the strongest possible terms today’s terrorist attack at a concert hall outside Moscow, in which at least 40 people were reportedly killed and over 100 others injured,” his spokesperson Farhan Haq said in a statement. Guterres “conveys his deep condolences to the bereaved families and the people and the Government of the Russian Federation,” added Haq.
Another video from today’s shooting at the “Crocus City Hall” in #Moscow pic.twitter.com/g0xD7b6PFO
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) March 22, 2024
The post At Least 133 Killed in Moscow Shooting, Islamic State Claims Responsibility first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.