Ahmed Atef and Abdullah Abu Deif (Cairo – Moscow)
Yesterday evening, the most prominent landmarks and buildings of the United Arab Emirates were decorated with the colors of the Russian flag, in solidarity with Moscow as a result of the terrorist attack that took place in a concert hall in a commercial center in the Russian capital, Moscow, and led to the death and injury of dozens of innocent people.
This initiative comes within the framework of the UAE's solidarity and strong condemnation of these criminal acts, and its permanent rejection of all forms of violence and terrorism that aim to destabilize security and stability and are inconsistent with international law.
This initiative also comes as an expression of the UAE's leadership and people standing alongside Russia and its people in confronting terrorist attacks.
Russian experts praised the UAE's great solidarity, its condemnation of the attack, and its solidarity with Russia and the families of the victims and those injured in the terrorist incident.
Andrey Antkov, a Russian political analyst from Moscow, confirmed to Al-Ittihad the depth and distinction of Russian-Emirati relations, praising UAE solidarity with the victims of the terrorist act in Moscow.
The Russian expert pointed out the need to listen to the UAE's repeated calls to unify efforts to confront terrorist challenges, and coordinate at the highest level between different countries as the only way to protect and defeat terrorism.
Amr Al-Deeb, Director of the Russian Realist Expert Center, praised the prominent Emirati role in confronting international terrorism, and the continued call from the wise Emirati leadership for the necessity of continuing the global alliance to confront international terrorist challenges, regardless of political differences.
Samer Khair, an analyst on Russian affairs, said that the UAE’s continued call for the need to put aside political differences in the face of global terrorism and cross-border challenges is a fulcrum on which the world must come together.
For his part, Rami Al-Qalioubi, a professor at the Oriental Institute in Moscow, said that the UAE plays an important role in promoting the model of moderation, and constitutes a soft power in confronting the challenges of global extremism.
Al-Qalioubi pointed out to Al-Ittihad that the depth of Russian-Emirati relations was reflected in its major role in the prisoner exchange process between Russia and Ukraine, and is again evident in the great solidarity campaign with Moscow in confronting criminal acts, and expressing its leadership and people’s standing alongside Russia against terrorism.
As for the researcher in international relations at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, Lana Badvan, she emphasized the UAE’s pioneering role and its endeavor to mobilize international efforts. With the aim of combating terrorism, she said that the Emirati role is indispensable.
In statements to Al-Ittihad, Lana called for the necessity of global solidarity, which has become more needed than ever, as a result of the spread of terrorism to include multiple countries, noting that global cooperation between the countries of the world may bring them together in one goal, which is eliminating the roots of terrorism. And so that inhumane and immoral incidents that destabilize the security and stability of the world are not repeated.
Experts agree that evil and terrorist groups target civilians in the world without distinction. Their goal is to spread fear and spread terrorism, regardless of the blood of innocent civilians anywhere.
Dr. says: Amr El-Deeb, director of the Russian Realist Experts Center, told Al-Ittihad that terrorist organizations, especially ISIS, do not know the differences between the names of countries, and the goal of criminal operations is to cause civilian and innocent victims, adding that terrorist operations are a single threat to all the peoples of the world who It suffers from the “fires of terrorism,” and this crime does not differentiate between anyone, whether Russia, America, or the Arab countries. Everyone has been “suffused by the fire of terrorism.”
Samer Khair, an analyst on Russian affairs, told Al-Ittihad that the terrorist attack in Russia launched by ISIS is a reminder to everyone of the danger of terrorism that threatens humanity as a whole.
Muhammad Jamal, a researcher specializing in Russian affairs, told Al-Ittihad that what happened in the Russian capital, Moscow, is a serious terrorist crime against civilians, stressing the need to condemn it and call for confronting such operations that threaten stability and global peace and confronting extremist groups.
He pointed out that the ISIS terrorist operation in Moscow came at a sensitive time for Russia from several aspects, most notably the timing of the 2024 Russian presidential elections and President Putin’s victory in a new presidential term, as well as the International Youth Festival organized by Russia at the beginning of this month in the city of Sochi under the banner of calling for peace and unification. Peoples and preserving the fate of the world, in addition to the conference of the Russian space agency Rosatom, which was expected to be organized in the coming days in Moscow near the site of the terrorist incident.
Mounir Adeeb, a researcher on extremist movements, told Al-Ittihad that the recent terrorist attack in Moscow serves as a warning bell for the need for international cooperation and solidarity against the phenomenon of cross-border terrorism and against the ISIS organization, pointing out that confronting extremist organizations will not be achieved through the efforts of a single country until If you have huge military forces, the matter requires concerted international efforts.
Adeeb added that these organizations emerged strongly when the international community was divided, and when some countries began to search for their political interests, away from facing the challenges common to all countries of the world, explaining that the world was surprised by the presence and significant growth of these organizations.
Adeeb explained that the terrorist organization “ISIS” resorts to creating chaos, despite the success of the international coalition in eliminating “ISIS” since 2017, but the organization is returning again by carrying out qualitative operations in the major countries of the world, considering that it may not return. The terrorist organization is as it was after its fall in the Middle East, but this return may be more dangerous through dormant, isolated, and hidden cells that may become active at any time and carry out specific operations, such as what happened in Russia.
Amr El-Deeb, director of the Russian Realist Experts Center, confirms that the criminal operation of the terrorist ISIS organization in Moscow confirms the necessity of the international union to confront all of these organizations, regardless of political differences. Al-Deeb pointed out that no security system alone can stop terrorist operations, especially those that rely on the idea of lone wolves, pointing out that the Moscow terrorist operation demonstrates that standing together to confront terrorism has become an urgent necessity.
Samer Khair, an analyst on Russian affairs, called for the necessity of joint action to dry up the sources of terrorism and eliminate its justifications, and not to resort to political explanations and analyzes of the motives of any terrorist attack. Because in the end there are extremists who carry out attacks and kill innocent people.
Andrei Antkov, a Russian political analyst from Moscow, told Al-Ittihad that terrorism is a challenge that transcends all differences, and the existence of an international system that supports the exchange of information to stop terrorist elements and predict criminal risks, especially from organizations similar to ISIS and other extremist organizations, is a necessity at this time. The current situation, especially with these organizations resorting to various criminal methods that ultimately support their goal of carrying out operations.
Researcher Muhammad Jamal, a specialist in Russian affairs, warned of the repercussions of the terrorist attack in Moscow, which heralds the presence of greater activity by the terrorist organization ISIS, which places a great responsibility on the international community, which may face serious security challenges related to the renewed activity of armed terrorist groups, and their danger to Civil society in all parts of the world.
Professor of Political Science at Sevastopol University, Amara Kanal, considered that this terrorist operation constitutes an extension of some of the terrorist activities that Russia witnessed during the presidential elections, stressing that they are failed attempts to destabilize the social and political system in Russia. He added to Al-Ittihad that Russian society expressed its cohesion in the face of these terrorist attacks through elections and large participation, explaining that these attempts cannot affect the Russian interior.
“Cross-border” terrorism
ISIS-Khorasan Province was founded in eastern Afghanistan at the end of 2014. Its name, Khorasan, is derived from an old word given to a region that includes parts of Iran, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan.
ISIS-Khorasan Province has previously launched terrorist attacks on mosques and places of worship in Afghanistan. The organization claimed responsibility for a terrorist bombing near the Russian embassy in the Afghan capital in September 2022. The number of members of the organization, which is one of the most regional organizations affiliated with ISIS, has witnessed a decline since recording its highest levels in approximately 2018, and it has suffered heavy losses since then.
The organization was responsible for an attack on Kabul International Airport in 2021 that killed 13 American soldiers and dozens of civilians during the American evacuation from Afghanistan.
Yesterday, the terrorist organization announced that its members stormed a hall, three of them began shooting at the crowd, and the fourth was busy setting fires with incendiary bombs.
On March 1, the US Embassy in Russia warned that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, including concerts.”
In 2022, Moscow witnessed a terrorist attack targeting the Dobrovoka Theater, where extremists detained 912 people in the theater. The detention process ended through the intervention of Russian special forces, resulting in the deaths of 130 people.
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