According to Russia's Federal Security Service, 40 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded in shootings at Crocus City Hall outside Moscow on Friday night.
This is the worst terror attack in Russia in years.
Three armed men opened fire inside the Crocus City Hall concert venue in the Moscow region, according to Russian state media agencies TASS and RIA Novosti.
There are believed to be dead and wounded, Russian state media reported, without specifying any numbers.
The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office said “Unidentified people in camouflage broke into Crocus City Hall and started shooting before the start of the concert,” according to Russian state media TASS.
RIA Novosti reported the three men “opened fire with automatic weapons” and “threw a grenade or an incendiary bomb, which started a fire” in the concert hall.
The music group Picnic was about to start performing when the shooting started, according to state media in Russia.
Video footage showed panic as the attack unfolded, with crowds of people huddling together, screaming, and ducking behind cushioned seats as gunshots started echoing in the vast hall.
A large plume of black smoke was seen billowing from the burning building, which appeared engulfed in flames, according to video footage from the scene.
Regional governor Andrey Vorobyov said everything was being done to save people. A SWAT team was called to the area, and more than 70 ambulance teams and doctors were assisting the victims.
Around 100 people were evacuated from the building by firefighters, TASS reported. Rescuers are still working to get people off the roof, according to the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin called the attack a “terrible tragedy.”
“Today a terrible tragedy occurred in the Crocus City center. My condolences to the loved ones of the victims. I gave orders to provide all necessary assistance to everyone who suffered during the incident,” Sobyanin said in a statement.
Sobyanin said on Telegram that he was canceling all sports, cultural, and other public events in Moscow this weekend.