Putin claims Moscow concert hall gunmen tried to escape to UKRAINE as he vows to ‘punish’ terrorists behind massacre

VLADIMIR Putin has spoken out for the first time since Russia was rocked by a terror attack at a Moscow rock concert last night that left at least 143 dead and 121 wounded.

The Russian leader, 71, called it a “barbaric terrorist attack” and attempted to blame the massacre on Ukraine, vowing to punish the perpetrators.

Vladimir Putin addressed the nation

Footage showed masked gunmen – that the US states are from ISIS-K – storming the venue

A huge blaze broke out over the Crocus City Hall in Russia after the gunmen set fire to the building with people trapped inside

Masked men in camouflage gear wielding automatic weapons stormed the Crocus City Hall last night – opening fire and hurling explosives into a crowd.

Some 6,000 people are believed to have been inside the venue watching Russian rock band Picnic when the bloodshed began.

The gunmen began shooting civilians at point-blank range – through glass doors, turnstiles and then the concert hall itself, traumatised witnesses said.

Devastating footage showed piles of bodies outside the blackened concert venue on the western edge of Moscow.

Three children were killed in the attack and four more are in hospital.

Firefighters and emergency workers are now facing the grim task of going through the smouldering ruins to potentially find even more victims.

The death toll continues to rise as more bodies are dragged from the rubble in an operation that could least “at least a few more days”, Moscow’s governor said.

Russia’s security service (FSB) launched a massive manhunt to catch those responsible and have now detained 11 suspects, including four it says were “directly” involved in last night’s attack.

Two were apprehended after a car chase and two others fled into a forest before being detained – all four have been named and pictured by the FSB.

US officials claim they have intelligence to confirm the plot was masterminded by the ISIS splinter cell operating in Afghanistan, known as ISIS -K.

The Islamic State have since claimed responsibility for the massacre, writing in a statement: “IS fighters attacked a large gathering” before they had “retreated to their bases safely”.

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What we know so far:

• At least 143 dead and more than 121 injured in the terrorist attack in Moscow
• Gunmen armed with automatic weapons & explosives stormed the Crocus City Hall last night at 8pm local time
• Some 6,000 fans were gathered to watch Russian rock band Picnic
• Fires were set in the venue and burned out of control – hampering the rescue mission
• Russia has arrested the four suspected gunmen
• A faction of ISIS have claimed responsibility for Russia’s worst terror attack in 20 years
• Ukraine has denied anything to do with the massacre
• US and British intelligence warned Russia weeks before about the threat of an ‘imminent’ attack – but were dismissed

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Ukraine was quick to deny any involvement in the attack despite early accusations by the Russians – and initially claimed it was a false flag attack to stoke tensions.

In a statement, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said: “There are no red lines for Putin’s dictatorship. It is ready to kill its own citizens for political purposes.”

However, the FSB have claimed the suspected gunmen were heading towards Russia’s border with Ukraine when they were arrested.

Putin’s spooks also suggested the attackers had contacts on the Ukrainian side – but there is no current evidence to back up such an allegation.

UK Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron this morning condemned the deadly terror attack.

He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “We offer our heartfelt condolences and express our deepest sympathy to the families of the many victims. Nothing can ever justify such horrific violence.”

Over 120 people are still in hospital with the conditions of 44 survivors described as “serious”.

Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said late on Friday that Kyiv had nothing to do with the attack.

In a video message posted on Telegram, Podolyak said: “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.”

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