Beaten Suspects Appear in Court as Allegations Traded Over Moscow Attack

Facts

• As Russia observed a national day of mourning, four of the 11 men held on suspicion of carrying out the Moscow concert hall attack in which at least 137 people were killed were charged on Monday. Two of the men plead guilty to the attacks.¹
• However, the four citizens of Tajikistan appeared to have been beaten, raising questions as to whether they were tortured. Two of the men had black eyes and the face of a third man was badly swollen. A fourth man was brought in on a wheelchair and reportedly drifted in and out of consciousness. They will be held in pre-trial detention until at least May, the court ruled.²
• Monday's hearing came amid continued apportioning of blame for the attacks. In televised remarks on Saturday, Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin suggested that Ukraine had a part to play. He said that the 11 suspects were detained as they headed towards the country, alleging that, "according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the border."³
• Putin added that the investigation is ongoing and that all the perpetrators — irrespective of "whoever they are, whoever is guiding them" — will be punished. Meanwhile, Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy did not offer condolences and instead blamed Putin for the attack. "They fight against us, and they don’t care what’s happening inside their own country," Zelenskyy said.³
• Meanwhile, social media channels affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility and posted previously unseen footage of the attack online. The US, later followed by France, also said they had intelligence that showed IS was responsible for the attack.⁴
• Early on Monday, the Russian foreign ministry's spokeswoman Maria Zakharova rejected the US assertions for who was responsible, accusing the US of trying to cover up Ukraine's tracks. However, later in the day, the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov gave a more watered-down response, stating that it could not currently comment on IS culpability.⁵

Sources: ¹Associated Press, ²BBC News, ³POLITICO, ⁴Daily Mail and ⁵TASS.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Reuters. While Russia may cast doubt on IS responsibility for the attack, the terror group has posted multiple verified videos of the attack. A number of US intelligence officials also said they have seen evidence that showed the group's culpability for what happened. By all reasonable accounts, it's IS who is to blame.
• Pro-Russia narrative, as provided by TASS. While the Kremlin cannot currently comment on IS' alleged culpability at this stage, Pres. Putin has already stated that the suspects were detained on their way to Ukraine. That in itself raises a number of questions that have to be answered. All who helped orchestrate, irrespective of which faction they represent, will be held accountable.

Predictions