Moscow Concert Hall Mass Shooting and Fire

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But the Muslim militants have been rather silent about the plight of the Uighurs. China is powerful and has one group (the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan)over a barrel because of trade deals. But neither Burma nor Sri Lanka have that kinda power, and yet they still get away with anti Muslim violence without a Jihad revenge. Go figure.

Is it plausible that ISIS has the capability to mount such an attack?
Absolutely. ISIS has staged over half-a-dozen attacks in Russia since 2016. The movement has long deemed Russia as much of an enemy of the Muslim people as the United States. In taking responsibility for the March 22 attack, ISIS credibly claimed “let crusader Russia and its allies know that the mujahideen do not forget to take revenge.”

In its founding-leader’s first speech following the declaration of the Islamic State’s caliphate in July 2014, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi singled out for attack “Jews, the crusaders, [and] their allies” and referred to them “being led by America and Russia and being mobilized by the Jews.” So, motive and intention are clear. In terms of capability, ISIS clearly already had an established presence in Russia given the arrests of twenty ISIS operatives there in the past year alone.

Russia had recently reported foiling an attack in Moscow by the ISIS Afghan affiliate. Does that group have ability to plan and mount attacks outside of Afghanistan?
Yes. In testimony before Congress a year ago, U.S. Army General Michael Kurilla, head of U.S. Central Command, warned that ISIS-Khorasan, the branch claiming responsibility for the Moscow concert attack, could execute “external operations against U.S. or Western interests abroad in under six months with little or no warning.” In January 2023 the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Christine Abizaid, told congress that ISIS-K was the “threat actor I am most concerned about. We see concerning indications of ISIS-Khorasan in Afghanistan and its ambition that might go beyond that immediate territory.”

The group’s ability to strike in even heavily secured environments was demonstrated this past January when dual suicide bombings killed 84 persons in Kerman, Iran, during ceremonies commemorating the fourth anniversary of the killing of Qassem Soleiman, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Quds Force commander.

How is ISIS organized these days?
A 2023 United Nations Monitoring Team report explained how ISIS-K had adopted a network-based system in place of its previous top-down structure. This is believed to have given the group additional flexibility as well as the capability to “fend off attack as part of a five-year plan with short-term and long-term objectives.” The presence of Russian fighters within its ranks since at least 2017, and the knowledge and operational access they bring, have likely enhanced ISIS-K’s ability for some of them to operate in their native country.

Why didn’t Russia heed the recent terrorism warning from U.S. officials?
The United States earlier this month had warned Russia that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow.” No more specific information as to the target, the timing, or the type of attack was provided—at least according to published reports. Accordingly, the warning was bereft of the “actionable intelligence” that might have enabled Russian authorities to implement effective security measures.

Nonetheless, this again underscores the advantage of shock and surprise that terrorists possess against their state opponents.

It is impossible for governments, even with suitable advance warning, to defend every target, everywhere across a city much less a country from every possible type of attack.

My take on this is that they want to hasten the onset of WWIII, which for some reason they expect to play out to their advantage.

Four suspects accused of killing more than 130 people in a terrorist attack at a Moscow concert hall appeared heavily beaten as they were charged by a court in the Russian capital Sunday.

Photos and videos released by the court showed the four men being led into the courtroom with various levels of injuries. Three of the men had visible bruises and swelling on their faces, including one with heavy bandaging around his right ear. The fourth seemed barely conscious as he sat inside the prisoner’s box dressed in a hospital gown and on a stretcher, with his eyes closed for most of the hearing.

It came after images showing the suspects’ violent treatment in custody were shared widely across Russian social media, and as President Vladimir Putin vowed revenge but made no mention of the Islamic State group, which claimed responsibility for the deadly attack.

The Basmanny District Court of Moscow named the suspects as Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, Shamsidin Fariduni and Mukhammadsobir Faizov. Two of the four had admitted their guilt, the court said, although their condition raised questions about whether they were able to speak freely.

All four were charged with committing a terror act, according to the court, and could face up to life imprisonment. The suspects were ordered detained until May 22 by the court. Seven more people were detained on suspicion of involvement in the attack.

All four are citizens of ex-Soviet state Tajikistan, Tass state news agency reported. The suspects had to use a translator to communicate in court, according to Tass.

NBC News analyzed footage shared over the weekend by Russian pro-war Telegram channels that showed at least one of the suspects being tortured, and others violently interrogated and injured. NBC News was able to authenticate the footage by comparing it with images of the suspects as they appeared in court on Sunday.



The detention hearing for the four suspects came as Russia marked a national day of mourning Sunday, and people continued to bring flowers to the burned-out site of the attack.