After nearly three months since the deadly attack on the "Crocus City Hall" near the Russian capital Moscow, claimed by ISIS, members of the organization who were detained in a prison in the Rostov region of southern Russia took two guards as hostages, as announced by the prison administration on Sunday.
Later, the Interfax news agency reported that the Russian prison service stated that the two hostages were freed without injury, and the hostage-takers were killed when special forces stormed the facility on Sunday.
Russian media reported that Russian special forces rescued the prison guards and shot dead six detainees linked to ISIS after they took the guards hostage inside a detention center in the city of Rostov on Sunday. The prison administration stated that "the detainees held two guards hostage in one of the cells of detention center number 1 in the Rostov region," adding that "negotiations were underway for the release of the hostages."
The Russian prison service later announced that the hostages were freed unharmed, and the hostage-takers were killed when the special forces stormed the center, according to Interfax news agency. It remains unclear how many of the six hostage-takers were killed.
A security source had earlier stated in response to questions from the official TASS agency that among those holding the guards were elements of ISIS who were supposed to appear in court on charges of "terrorism."
The Crocus Attack: It was on March 22 that gunmen opened fire inside the "Crocus City Hall" near Moscow, resulting in at least 144 deaths and 360 injuries, the highest death toll in an attack on Russian soil since 2004. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. Since then, 20 individuals have been arrested, including the four attackers, all of whom hail from Tajikistan, the former Soviet republic in Central Asia adjoining Afghanistan.
Russia Acknowledges: On May 24, Russia admitted for the first time to ISIS's responsibility for the attack. Alexander Bortnikov, the head of the Russian Federal Security Service, stated, "Investigations revealed that the preparations, funding, attack, and the terrorists' withdrawal were coordinated online by members of the Khorasan group," according to the RIA Novosti news agency. During a meeting of security agency heads from Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries in Bishkek, Bortnikov pointed fingers at NATO, alleging that NATO countries are aiding in sending mercenaries and armed elements of terrorist organizations to Ukraine. This came after Moscow repeatedly attempted to link Ukraine and the West to the terrorist attack, having previously declared that some of those arrested were heading to the capital Kyiv after the operation.
