At least three people were killed and 21 others injured after a homemade bomb exploded near an upscale restaurant in central Moscow on Saturday evening, Russian authorities said.
The blast occurred shortly before 8pm near the Balzi Rossi Italian restaurant at Kudrinskaya Square, one of Moscow’s iconic Stalin-era skyscrapers.
According to Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAK), an unidentified woman carrying an improvised explosive device attempted to enter the restaurant but was stopped by a security guard.
The committee said the woman, the security guard and a customer were killed instantly when the device detonated.
Russian broadcaster REN TV, citing an unnamed source, later reported that two injured victims had died in hospital, raising the death toll to five, although authorities have not officially confirmed the updated figure. The report also said six people remained in serious condition.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin condemned the incident as a “brutal terrorist attack” and extended condolences to the victims’ families, vowing that those responsible would be brought to justice.
Police sealed off the area as heavily armed security personnel and emergency responders launched investigations.
Authorities have not identified any suspects or disclosed the identities of the victims.
Unverified reports circulating on social media claimed that a senior Russian military commander may have been the intended target but was unharmed.
The attack comes more than four years into Russia’s war with Ukraine, during which several high-ranking Russian military figures have reportedly been targeted in assassinations and attempted attacks.
Some Russian military bloggers blamed Ukraine for the explosion without providing evidence. Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the allegations.
Russian newspaper Kommersant reported that investigators are considering the possibility that the woman carrying the explosive device may not have known it contained a bomb and that it could have been detonated remotely.
The restaurant had reportedly been closed to the public on Saturday for a private event.
The incident has drawn comparisons to the 2023 bombing that killed pro-war Russian blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who died after accepting a bomb hidden inside a statuette. A woman was later sentenced to 27 years in prison over the attack, claiming she had acted under instructions from an individual in Ukraine. Ukrainian officials neither confirmed nor denied involvement in that case.
