Foreign diplomats lay flowers in memory of Russia's concert hall attack victims

In a ceremony held in memory of the victims of the recent concert hall attack near Moscow, ambassadors from various foreign countries participated, as announced by the Russian foreign ministry’s protocol department on Saturday.

The attack, which occurred on March 22, saw gunmen opening fire with automatic weapons on concertgoers, resulting in at least 144 people losing their lives, making it the deadliest attack in Russia in two decades.

The State Protocol Department of the ministry stated on its website, “On March 30, 2024, a ceremony to lay flowers at the spontaneous memorial near the Crocus City Hall complex was held. Heads and staff of more than 130 diplomatic missions (over 250 people) took part in the memorial action.”

According to reports from Kommersant newspaper, ambassadors from the United States, European Union, Africa, Latin America, and representatives of the UN and other organizations were among those who participated in the ceremony.

During the ceremony, attendees laid flowers at the memorial and released white balloons into the sky as a gesture of remembrance.

The protocol department expressed their gratitude by saying, “We are deeply grateful to the distinguished representatives of the diplomatic corps for their solidarity with the Russian people at such a difficult time.”

Responsibility for the attack was claimed by Islamic State, with U.S. officials stating that intelligence indicates it was carried out by the network’s Afghan branch, Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K).

However, Russian investigators announced on Thursday that they had evidence linking the concert hall gunmen to “Ukrainian nationalists”, a claim that the United States dismissed as unfounded propaganda.

Russia has maintained its belief that Ukraine was involved in the attack, despite denials from Kyiv.

(Reporting by Reuters, editing by Giles Elgood)