The chief of the State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan (GKNB), Kamchybek Tashiyev has stood up for citizens of Tajikistan while commenting on the Crocus City Hall terror attack.
“Kyrgyzstan mourns what happened in the Crocus City Hall. Terrorists have not nationality and it is inappropriate to blame the whole nation for what happened, going on about members of terrorist organization, interested in inciting ethnic enmity and introducing anti-migrant sentiments in the Russian Federation,” Tashiyev said on a post on Facebook.
“For my part, I can firmly emphasize decency of the special services of the Republic of Tajikistan, tirelessly fighting against terrorist and extremist organizations. Citizens of any country could fall under the influence of recruiters; however, it was not by chance that those who ordered the terrorist attack chose representatives of one nation. I hope that the joint efforts taken by the special services of the fraternal countries will not allow the implementation of criminal goals of the so-called “pseudo-Islamists”, Kyrgyzstan GKNB chief noted.
Recall the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group carried out a terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Krasnogorsk, Moscow Oblast on March 22, 2024. Investigators said the attack had killed 144 people (including those who died later in hospital), and more than 551 concertgoers were injured by gunshot wounds and "poisoning" related to the fire.
The Islamic State – Khorasan Province (IS–K), a regional affiliate of the IS that operates along the Afghanistan–Pakistan border, claimed responsibility in a statement through the IS-affiliated Amaq news agency shortly after the attack. Amaq also published a video filmed by one of the attackers. It showed the attackers shooting victims and slitting the throat of a victim, while the filming attacker was reciting the takbir, praising God and speaking against infidels.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called the attack a “barbaric terrorist act” and said that the gunmen had been arrested. He also declared March 24, 2024 to be a national day of mourning, and sought to link assailants to Ukraine. Russia's Foreign Ministry called the incident a terrorist attack. It was the deadliest terrorist attack in Russia since the Beslan school siege in 2004. Investigators reportedly detained 11 people in relation to the attack, including four suspects, who were charged with terrorism on 24 March.
