Men in camouflage opened fire with automatic weapons on concertgoers outside Moscow on Friday, killing at least 60 people and wounding 145, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group, Reuters reported.

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07:49The United States warned Russia this month of a terrorist attack targeting “large gatherings” in Moscow, the White House said.

“Earlier this month, the U.S. government had information about a planned terrorist attack in Moscow that could target large gatherings of people, including concerts, and Washington shared that information with Russian authorities,” said Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the U.S. National Security Council.

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In the attack, the biggest in Russia since the Beslan school siege in 2004, the attackers fired a barrage of bullets into the audience just before a performance by the Soviet rock band Picnic at the 6,200-seat Crocus City Hall west of the capital.

The video posted on the social network shows the moment when several armed people in camouflage entered the building and opened fire.

“Suddenly a blow was heard from behind – shots. A burst of gunfire – I don’t know what,” a witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

“The agitation has begun. Everyone ran to the escalator. Everyone shouted; everyone ran,” said an eyewitness.

Russian investigators said that the death toll exceeded 60 people. Health officials said about 145 people were injured, about 60 of them in critical condition.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was informed about the situation by the heads of the security services, in particular the head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) Oleksandr Bortnikov, the Kremlin said.

Russian investigators released photos of a Kalashnikov assault rifle, bulletproof vests with several spare magazines and bags of spent ammunition.

(article photo: Investigative Committee of Russia / AP / Profimedia)

The “Islamic State” claimed responsibility for the attack, the Amaq agency reported on Telegram.

Some Russian media published blurry images of the two alleged attackers in a white car.

At the time of publication, it is not known what happened to them after the attack.

Islamic State said its fighters attacked the outskirts of Moscow, “killing and wounding hundreds of people and causing extensive destruction in the area before safely retreating to their bases.”

The United States said it had information confirming that the Islamic State group was responsible for the attack.

In recent weeks, Washington has warned Moscow about the possibility of an attack. “We have properly warned the Russians,” a US official told Reuters.

Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the President of Ukraine, stressed on Friday evening in Telegram that “Ukraine is not involved in the Crocus terrorist attack.” The White House also stated that there are currently no signs of Ukraine’s involvement in the attack.

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