Overview
- A device exploded near the entrance of the Balzi Rossi restaurant in central Moscow, killing an unidentified woman, a security guard who stopped her, and a diner, with around 21 people taken to hospital.
- Investigators sealed the scene, collected forensic evidence and CCTV footage, and treated the incident as a criminal terrorism case being led by Russia’s anti-terrorism and investigative authorities.
- Authorities and reporting say the restaurant was closed for a private banquet when the woman tried to enter carrying a package that then detonated outside the venue.
- Probes are focusing on two main theories: that the bomb was set off remotely or that the woman was an unwitting courier who did not know she was carrying explosives.
- The attack has not been claimed by any group and no motive has been publicly established, raising fresh questions about security in Moscow after a recent string of high‑profile attacks and protective measures for senior officials.