Putin: Attack carried out by extremists, but they tried to escape towards Ukraine

(Patria) - The deadly attack on a concert hall near Moscow was carried out on Friday by radical Islamists, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday, claiming they tried to escape towards Ukraine.

"We know that the crime was committed by radical Islamists who have an ideology against which the Islamic world itself has been fighting for centuries," Putin said at a government meeting, mentioning such a connection for the first time, three days after the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.

"We know who committed this crime against Russia and its people. What interests us is who ordered it," he added.

According to Putin, the attackers tried to escape towards Ukraine.

"It is important to answer the question why the terrorists tried to go to Ukraine after the crime? Who was waiting for them there?" said the Russian president, while Kyiv denies any involvement in the attack.

The death toll from the attack in Moscow rose to 139 on Monday, announced the head of the Russian Investigative Committee, Aleksandr Bastrikin.

He added that the number of injured in the attack remained unchanged, i.e., 182.

Putin said that those who planned the attack hoped to sow panic and discord in Russian society, but, as he says, they encountered unity and determination to resist evil.