Attack on St. Petersburg: 5 Facts to Know

Hromadske has gathered important information on the April 4th attack in St. Petersburg, Russia.

#1: The number of victims has risen to 14

There are 14 dead and about 50 injured, according to the updated official data on the victims of the explosion between the stations ‘Sennaya Ploschad’ and ‘Tekhnologicheskyi Institut’.  11 people died at the scene, and 3 more died in hospital. Their names have been published on the St. Petersburg Ministry of Emergency Situations’ website.

Photo by Anton Vaganov/EPA

#2: Suicide bomber from Kyrgyzstan is suspected in committing the terrorist attack

According to the Investigative Committee of Russia, the attack was committed by a suicide bomber. The remains of his body were found in the third carriage of the train and forensic evaluation identified them to be those of 22-year-old Akbarzhon Dzhalilov.

He was born in Kyrgyzstan but gained Russian citizenship in 2011, and lived in St. Petersburg.

There is no official information regarding his motive behind the attack. The Kyrgyz newspaper ‘24’ has reported that the Kyrgyz secret services have questioned the parents and close relatives of suspected attacker.

#3: The terrorist attack happened during Putin’s visit to St. Petersburg

The Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko on 3rd April in St. Petersburg.  The Kremlin has stated that, the fact the attack was carried out during Putin's visit, has "forced them to think".  "This is a subject for special forces to analyse", says the press-secretary to the Russian president, Dmitry Peskov.

Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/POOL/EPA

#4: The driver of the train continued moving and his action saved many lives

The explosion occurred on the track between two stations. The driver, Alexander Kavyerin, decided to move on without interruption to the nearest station, "Tekhnologicheskyi institut ". He says that he heard the sound of the explosion and contacted the dispatcher.

#5: Special forces might have known about plans for a terrorist attack on the metro

This was reported by ‘Kommersant’ who referenced a ‘trustworthy source’. The information was provided by a Russian, who collaborated with the terrorist group ‘Islamic state’, and was arrested after returning from Syria.

Photo: EPA 

Opposition politicians have drawn attention to the fact that the terroristic attack occurred as mass anti-corruption protests against the Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev were being held in Russia.

Read More: Latest Demonstrations in Moscow, Explained 

"Of course, as ever, this attack was untimely [for the government - ed.], and varying opinions on the subject have been offered,” said ex-Russian MP Ilya Ponomaryov in his interview with ‘Hromadske’, “This could lead to a ‘crackdown’  on terrorist threats, introducing additional restrictions on  public events”.

More protests have been scheduled in Russia for next weekend.

By Tuesday morning, normal service had fully resumed on the St. Petersburg metro. A period of three days mourning was declared in the city.