- Three people died in the Moscow restaurant bombing
- Twenty-one others were injured in the explosion
- Authorities are investigating the deadly attack
A female suicide bomber detonated an improvised explosive device near a popular restaurant in central Moscow on Saturday evening, killing at least three people and injuring 21 others, according to Russian authorities.
Eko Hot Blog gathered that the explosion occurred shortly before 8 p.m. outside the Balzi Rossi Italian restaurant at Kudrinskaya Square, one of Moscow’s iconic Stalin-era skyscrapers. Officials said the woman carrying the device attempted to enter the restaurant but was stopped by a security guard before the bomb exploded.
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Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee said the blast killed the suspected bomber, the security guard and a restaurant customer instantly. Several other people sustained injuries and were taken to hospital.
Local broadcaster REN TV later reported that two of the injured victims had died, raising the death toll to five, although authorities had not officially confirmed the additional fatalities.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin condemned the incident as a “brutal terrorist attack” and expressed condolences to the victims’ families, assuring that those responsible would be brought to justice.
Security personnel quickly cordoned off the area as investigators launched a probe into the attack. Authorities have not identified the victims or announced any suspects.
Unverified reports circulating on Russian social media claimed a senior military official may have been the intended target but escaped unharmed. There has been no official confirmation of those claims.
The incident comes amid heightened security concerns more than four years into Russia’s war with Ukraine. Some Russian military bloggers alleged, without providing evidence, that Ukraine was behind the bombing. Ukrainian authorities had not commented on the accusations at the time of reporting.
Russian newspaper Kommersant suggested the woman carrying the explosive may not have known she was transporting a bomb, raising the possibility that the device was detonated remotely.
The Balzi Rossi restaurant had reportedly been closed to the public on Saturday for a private function when the explosion occurred nearby.
The attack has drawn comparisons to the 2023 assassination of pro-war Russian blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who was killed after receiving a bomb concealed inside a statuette. A woman convicted in that case said she acted on instructions from a contact in Ukraine, though Ukrainian officials neither confirmed nor denied involvement.
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