Support The Moscow Times!

No Plans for Putin to Meet With Concert Attack Survivors, Kremlin Says

People near Crocus City Hall after the Friday's deadly attack. Sergei Vedyashkin / Moskva News Agency

The Kremlin gave no indication on Thursday that President Vladimir Putin plans to meet with the family members of those killed in Friday's deadly attack at the Crocus City Hall music venue.

Putin was seen lighting a candle for the victims at a Moscow church last week but has otherwise not visited the scene of the massacre or met publicly with any survivors or relatives of those who were killed. 

"If any contacts are necessary, we will inform you accordingly," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked if the Russian leader planned to meet with family members of the dead.

He added that Putin also did not plan to visit the Crocus City concert hall, the scene of the massacre where rescue workers continue to search beneath the rubble for bodies.

"In these days it would be completely inappropriate to carry out any fact-finding trips because this would simply interfere with [rescuers'] work," Peskov said.

The Islamic State's affiliate ISIS-K has claimed responsibility for last week’s attack, the deadliest in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege, and social media channels linked to the militant group have published graphic videos of the gunmen committing the mass killing at Crocus City Hall.

However, top Russian officials, including Putin himself, have suggested that Ukraine and the West were partly responsible for the mass killing, though they have yet to bring forward any concrete evidence to back up the claim.

The Kremlin has expressed confidence in the country's security agencies, despite swirling questions over how they failed to thwart the massacre, which left at least 143 dead and 360 others wounded.

… we have a small favor to ask.

As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just 2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.

Continue

Read more