By The Associated Press
Before gunmen last week carried out the deadliest attack in Russia in twenty years, authorities added the international LGBTQ+ “movement” to a government list of extremist and terrorist groups.
This addition to the list followed a Russian Supreme Court ruling last year that targeted gay and transgender people in the country.
In addition to listing al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, a group related to the latter claimed responsibility for the concert hall attack. The inclusion of LGBTQ+ activists raised questions about how Russia’s extensive security services assess threats to the country.
The March 22 attack that killed over 140 people represented a significant security failure under President Vladimir Putin, who rose to power 24 years ago by taking a strong stance against those he labeled terrorists in the Russian region of Chechnya, where a violent rebellion was occurring.
The security lapse has caused many to question how gunmen were able to easily kill so many people at a public event. One week after the massacre, here’s an examination of what led to the failure in preventing the concert hall attack and the government’s disorganized response to it:
Russia’s extensive security system has recently concentrated on suppressing the political opposition, independent media, and civil society groups in the strongest crackdown since Soviet times. The repression has only increased after the invasion of Ukraine.
Individual protesters are quickly suppressed by riot police. After the death of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison on February 16, people bringing flowers and candles to makeshift memorials were promptly detained. Surveillance cameras with facial recognition software are widely utilized.
Many opposition groups have been labeled as “extremists,” which can result in long prison sentences for anyone associated with them.
Navalny was serving a 19-year sentence on extremism charges, and his political network is on the extremist and terrorist organizations list, just like the LGBTQ+ “movement” added to the list on March 22.
Top Navalny associate Leonid Volkov, who resides abroad, mentioned that the security agencies are too preoccupied with the crackdown on political activities to focus on terrorism threats.
“They prefer to create imaginary terrorists — those who think or love differently — so they don’t have time for real ones,” he mentioned on his messaging app channel.
Many security officers are concentrated on suspected Ukrainian agents and defending against sabotage and other attacks by Ukraine in the 2-year-old war. They are also monitoring social media for indications of anti-war sentiment.
After the attack, law enforcement agencies followed a familiar pattern of repression, detaining people over social media posts about it that authorities considered offensive.
Andrei Kolesnikov, senior fellow at Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, mentioned that security forces focused on Kremlin critics but have not been effective in addressing real threats to the country.
"This device can't be efficient when it has to carry out its main purpose to make sure citizens' safety," he wrote in an article, noting Putin has had almost 25 years to ensure "stability and security, but instead he ruined both.
The U.S. government said it informed Russia in early March about an upcoming attack under the "duty to warn" rule that requires U.S. intelligence officials to share such information, even with enemies. It was unclear how specific it was.
The U.S. Embassy in Moscow also issued a public notice on March 7 advising Americans to avoid crowds in the capital over the next 48 hours due to "imminent" plans by extremists to target large gatherings, including concerts.
With Russia-U.S. relations at their lowest point since the Cold War, Moscow was likely to treat any such tip with suspicion. Three days before the attack, Putin dismissed the U.S. Embassy notice as an attempt to scare or intimidate Russians and blackmail the Kremlin.
Alexander Bortnikov, head of the Federal Security Service, or FSB, said the U.S. warning was general and didn't help track down the attackers. He said the FSB, acting on the tip, targeted some suspects but it proved wrong.
Putin and other officials tried to divert attention from the security failure by seeking to link the attack to Ukraine despite Kyiv's emphatic denials and the Islamic State affiliate's claim of responsibility.
In a persistent attempt to blame Kyiv, investigators alleged the attackers had received cash and cryptocurrency from Ukraine and arrested a man accused of involvement in the transfers. They didn't provide any evidence.
It took anti-terrorism units at least a half-hour to reach the concert hall after hearing of the attack. By that time, the gunmen had fled after setting fire to the venue.
The security forces' arrival at the concert hall on Moscow's outer ring road was delayed by rush hour traffic, and it took them time to assess the situation as concertgoers fled.
Police said they were able to check security video before the building was destroyed and quickly saw the gunmen. Cameras caught them arriving at the hall and then departing in a white Renault. Russian media said the car was continuously caught by traffic cameras as it sped from Moscow.
It wasn't immediately clear why authorities allowed them to drive more than 370 kilometers (over 230 miles) southwest before finally arresting them about 140 kilometers (86 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
After the Islamic State's branch in Afghanistan claimed responsibility, Putin at first did not mention the group on the day after the attack. On Monday, he acknowledged "radical Islamists" were behind the attack but also repeated — without evidence — that Ukraine and the West were likely involved. Those allegations were echoed by his security chiefs.
He and his lieutenants said the arrest of the four gunmen near Ukraine indicated Kyiv's likely involvement, ignoring Ukrainian denials and the IS statement.
Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close Moscow ally, declared that he and Putin had discussed strengthening the Russia-Belarus border to prevent the attackers from crossing — muddling the Kremlin claims of a Ukrainian escape route.
Four suspects were taken into custody, along with seven others, with efforts to find more people involved ongoing. Putin also instructed investigators to locate the masterminds, a task that seems difficult.
A senior Turkish security official stated on Tuesday that two of the four suspects briefly stayed in Turkey before traveling together to Russia on March 2.
In a video released by Russian news outlets, one of the suspects informed interrogators that he had been hired for the attack by an associate of an Islamic preacher who offered him 1 million rubles (about $10,800).
The truthfulness of the suspects’ statements has come into doubt after they showed signs of severe beatings. During a court hearing on Sunday night, their faces appeared swollen and bruised. One had a heavily bandaged ear – reportedly cut off during interrogation — another had a plastic bag hanging over his neck, and a third was in a wheelchair with his eyes closed, accompanied by medical personnel.
Putin’s claims of Ukrainian involvement in the attack could pave the way for him to escalate the conflict and further tighten the crackdown on critics domestically.
However, he is unlikely to reorganize the leadership of security agencies, despite the embarrassing mistakes that led to the security lapses.
Putin is known to dislike making personnel changes under pressure, which could make him appear weak. During controlled televised meetings with top officials to discuss the attack, he refrained from any criticism of their performance, suggesting their positions are secure, at least for now.
While leading opposition activists are in prison or abroad and independent media is restricted, Putin recently secured another six years in power through a managed election landslide. This will keep him well-protected from any public criticism.
Compliant lawmakers and state-controlled broadcasters and other media will continue to emphasize his message of Ukraine’s alleged role in the attack, diverting attention from the inadequate performance of law enforcement agencies.
Get more Colorado news by subscribing to our daily Your Morning Dozen email newsletter.
