Overview
- A powerful explosive detonated outside the Balzi Rossi restaurant on Saturday, killing three people and injuring about 21 others according to Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee.
- Officials say an unidentified woman stopped at the entrance by a security guard was carrying the device and died in the blast that also killed the guard and a restaurant patron.
- Police sealed off Kudrinskaya Square, deployed bomb-disposal and forensic teams, and opened a criminal case classified as a terrorist act while investigators review footage and evidence.
- Reports citing Kommersant and unnamed sources say investigators are probing unconfirmed theories that the bomb was detonated remotely or that the carrier did not know she was carrying explosives.
- No group has claimed responsibility, Moscow’s mayor has called the attack a terrorist act, and the incident comes during heightened security concerns inside Russia that may lead to tighter protection for senior officials.