The death toll from a mass shooting at a concert hall on the outskirts of Moscow Friday evening has risen to at least 133 people, as emergency responders continued to clear away the rubble.
“The U.S. Government had information about a planned terrorist attack in Moscow - potentially targeting large gatherings, to include concerts,” Adrienne Watson, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, said in a statement.
Watson said the intelligence prompted the U.S. Embassy to issue a security advisory to Americans living in Russia, and share the information with Russian authorities in accordance with its longstanding “duty to warn” policy.
“They tried to hide and moved towards Ukraine, where according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them on the Ukrainian side to cross the state border,” Putin said.
The attack began late Friday after camouflaged gunmen carrying automatic assault rifles burst into the Crocus City Hall — a large shopping and entertainment center on the western outskirts of Moscow.
Harrowing video footage shows the men firing at bystanders as they attempted to hide or rush for the emergency exits.
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