THE horrific attack on the Crocus City Hall concert venue in Moscow has been claimed by the Islamic State in Khorasan Province.

This Afghanistan-based branch of the terrorist group has form for mass slaughter of civilians, such as the killing of 175 at Kabul airport in 2021. Its savagery is unusual even among terrorists, if assessed by its choice of targets, which have included an attack on a Kabul maternity ward where its “fighters” gunned down mothers and infants.

There are already attempts to blame various governments for the atrocity. The political motives for such accusations are obvious, and they should be treated with extreme caution. There is no need to cite conspiracies to explain an Isis attack on Russia.