The four suspected perpetrators of the attack on a concert hall near Moscow were placed in pre-trial detention on Sunday after their appearance before a court in the capital. This appearance comes on the evening of a day of mourning in Russia, after Friday’s massacre which left at least 137 dead. This is the deadliest attack on European soil claimed by Daesh.
This Monday morning, during a press conference, the Kremlin spokesperson, however, refused to comment on several aspects of the investigation, starting with the claim and the acts of torture of the men arrested the day after the attack. We take stock.
How does the Kremlin respond to torture allegations?
The Kremlin spokesman initially refused to comment on the allegations of torture of suspects in the attack in the Moscow suburbs. And this, despite the publication of videos on social networks and photos showing them with bloody faces.
“I will leave this question unanswered,” Dmitry Peskov said when asked by journalists. In footage of their arrests, shown on Russian public television, three of the men had blood on their faces. Another video, posted online and whose authenticity has not been confirmed, appears to show one of the suspects having his ear cut off by someone off-camera.
The authorities said they had arrested 11 people in total, including these four alleged attackers, but the profile of the other suspects remains very vague. Questioned by journalists this Monday about these seven other people, Dmitri Peskov kicked in, once again evoking the investigation.
What does the Kremlin say about ISIS’s claim?
The Kremlin also refused to back down on the claim of the jihadist group Islamic State (IS). “The investigation is ongoing and it would be wrong for the presidential administration to comment on the progress of the investigation. We will not do it,” assured Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson. Let us recall that Vladimir Putin, for his part, mentioned the Ukrainian track, which kyiv denies.
Will Vladimir Putin visit Crocus City Hall?
Dmitri Peskov clarified that the Russian president had not planned at this stage to go to Crocus City Hall, the site of the attack.