Survivors Recount Attack as Gun Photo Released

Survivors of a massacre at a Moscow concert hall that has left at least 115 people dead have spoken of their fear as they saw the attackers shoot victims at point-blank range.

Armed men opened fire at Crocus City Hall, about 10 miles north of Moscow’s center, in an attack the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for—a theory that the U.S. has said is credible. As of midday Saturday local time, Vladimir Putin had not commented. Newsweek has contacted Russia’s Investigative Committee by email

Images of the alleged suspects have been published on social media, along with weapons used in the mass shooting. Three children were reportedly among the dead, with the toll expected to rise.

The Telegram channel VChK-OGPU, which claims to be linked to Russia’s security services, posted audio and video interviews with survivors. One clip showed a woman lying on a hospital bed who described how the attackers “ran in and started to shoot at people.”

“I dropped to the ground and pretended to be dead. The girl next to me had been killed,” the woman said. Other survivors’ stories were audio interviews, with one unnamed woman telling the channel how “they started shooting us from behind.”

“Those who were closer to the glass doors immediately fell down,” she added. “My husband had a gunshot wound in his shoulder and leg.” She said she saw two men who were speaking in a different language to Russian. One of them shot everyone nearby. “We lay down and prayed.”

Another woman said that, from the balcony of the venue, she could see “there were bodies; there was blood. We had to run away somewhere, and went into some kind of kitchen. We sat there, hiding.”

“We stayed there for some time and then we had to move downstairs,” she added. “We were there for about an hour and then we went outside.”

A different woman told the Telegram channel how she and her friends hit in a corner at the entrance while a man “came up and started shooting straight at people. They had black hair and were shouting to each other but not in Russian.”

Russian news agencies reported that 11 people have been arrested, including four people directly involved in the concert hall attack.

Alexander Bortnikov, director of Russia’s main intelligence agency the FSB, informed Putin that 11 people had been arrested including four people involved in the attack at the venue on Friday, state news agency TASS reported.

State-media outlets did not immediately name any of the suspects. However, the identities of six suspects, who were allegedly nationals of Tajikistan, ranging in age from 19 to 51, were named and pictured on Russian Telegram channels.

The suspects were named as Faizov Rivozhidin Zokirdzhonovich, Ismoilov Rivozhidin Islomovich, Faizov Muhammad-Sobir Zokirdzhonovich, Nasramailov Makhamadrasul Zarabidinovich Nasramailov, Safolzoda Shohinjon Abdugaforovich and Nazarov Rustam Isroilovich.

The Foreign Ministry of Tajikistan, a former Soviet country that has close ties to Moscow, said reports that Tajik citizens were involved was “false information” and that it had not received official confirmation from Russian authorities.

Russian Duma Deputy Alexander Khinshtein posted on Telegram that preliminary information suggested the suspects were apprehended after the Renault car they were driving in overturned as they tried to flee police in the Bryansk region, about 180 miles away.

One terrorist was detained on the spot, the others fled into a forest, and a second suspect was arrested at around 3:50 a.m. while a search for the others continues. Their involvement in the attack is yet to be determined.

A pistol, a magazine for an AKM assault rifle and passports of citizens of Tajikistan were found in the Renault car, added Khinshtein, who posted images of what he said were weapons found at the scene.

The Investigative Committee of Russia, which examines serious incidents, has shared images showing that ammunition and weapons believed to have been used in the attack.

The U.S. embassy in Moscow had warned on March 7 that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings” and said that Americans should not go to events in Russia with crowds. The warning had been dismissed by Putin as “Western blackmail” to intimidate Russians.