A tragic shooting unfolded at a concert hall in the Moscow suburb of Krasnogorsk, resulting in at least 40 fatalities and over 100 injuries.
Telegram channels 112 and SHOT reported the incident, indicating a dire situation with an additional 200 individuals trapped inside the building as a fire engulfs the premises.
Reports suggest that three assailants dressed in camouflage initiated the attack on concertgoers at the Crocus City Hall. Eyewitnesses recounted an explosion preceding the shooting, igniting the fire that has further complicated rescue efforts.
Despite the efforts of firefighters on the scene, they were unable to immediately extinguish the blaze in the shopping center. Firefighting helicopters have been dispatched to assist in the operation.
The Federal Security Service (FSB) confirmed the incident, affirming that law enforcement agencies are mobilizing all necessary measures to address the situation.
In one unverified video posted on social media, men with automatic weapons were shown firing repeatedly at screaming civilians, including women, who were cowering below what looked like an entrance sign to “Crocus City Hall”.
Other video footage showed a number of people lying motionless in pools of blood outside the hall.
Another video showed the attackers shooting at people in the concert hall.
The White House said on Friday that images of shooting in the Russian capital were hard to watch.
“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,” White House spokesman John Kirby said.
The U.S. embassy in Russia warned earlier this month that “extremists” had imminent plans for an attack in Moscow.
It issued its warning several hours after the FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said it had foiled an attack on a synagogue in Moscow by a cell of the militant Sunni Muslim group Islamic State.
This is a developing story.
