A former sushi chef from Krygyzstan has been named as the suicide bomber who killed 14 people and injured 50 in the St. Petersburg train massacre on Monday. Akbarzhon Jalilov, sometimes spelled Akbarjon Djalilov, is thought to be behind the bombing.
What Happened?
Akbarzhon Jalilov, a 22-year-old Russian citizen who was born in Krygyzstan, has been identified by security services as the suspected bomber in Monday’s metro attacks in St. Petersburg, Russia. Initially, another man was marked as a potential suspect, but he turned himself into authorities after Russian agencies circulated his picture.
Jalilov set off an explosion between Sennaya Ploshchad and Sadovaya train station, killing himself and many others. He also planted a second device hidden in a fire extinguisher that failed to explode.
Kremlin officials said that parts of the attacker’s body had been found at the scene. CCTV images of the suspect have been released showing him in a red Parka jacket and carrying a backpack through the Metro. Other images of him walking along the street see his fists clenched, potentially because he was clutching the trigger of the bomb. Police believe Jalilov has close ties to Islamist radicals.
Ali Matkarimov, a former friend, said the two were sushi chefs together in 2013 and that Jalilov was “not even saying his prayers.”
The Kremlin described the attacks as a “challenge” to President Valdimir Putin, saying it was “noteworthy” that it occurred while he was in the city. No organizations has yet claimed full responsibility for the attack, though previous attacks on Russia have been attributed to ISIS and Chechens.
According to the Mirror, “It was also reported today that Russian security services knew about a possible attack in St Petersburg and were tracking suspected bombers. A Russian source in ISIS, detained returning from Syria, had given several identities of suspects, and their mobile numbers.”
Four metro stations have been reopened.
Who Is Akbarzhon Jalilov?
Jalilov was a 22-year-old Russian citizen born in Kyrgyzstan, which borders Kazakhstan and China in central Asia. Boston Marathon bombers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev were also born there. Kyrgyzstan has seen around 500 individuals join ISIS.Russian officials believe Jalilov had close ties to Islamic radicals.
According to the Guardian, “Kyrgyzstan, a predominantly Muslim central Asian state of 6 million, is Russia’s close political ally and hosts a Russian military airbase.”
Rakhat Sulaymanov, the spokesman for the country’s secret service, said: ‘It was established, that the suspect in this act of terror was born in our republic.’
He named him as Akbarjon Djalilov, who was born in 1995 and has ‘probably ‘acquired Russian nationality,’ he said.
https://twitter.com/elcaos/status/849129733300334592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fheavy.com%2Fnews%2F2017%2F04%2Fakbarzhon-jalilov-akbarjon-djalilov-st-petersburg-photo-terror-attack-suspect-terrorist-isis%2F
[googlemaps https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m14!1m8!1m3!1d7997.226928650632!2d30.3203509!3d59.9270523!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x0%3A0x65b7f1c57b1fc5ab!2sSpasskaya!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1491224533578&w=750&h=400]
