On Wednesday, a blast occurred in a store in St. Petersburg, injuring 13 people.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared the explosion in St. Petersburg a “terrorist attack,” ordering to act in accordance with law when detaining those responsible for the crime.
The president said that if there is a threat to the lives of law enforcement officers, they need to “act decisively, not to capture anyone, to kill on the spot.”
An explosion occurred on Wednesday at a grocery store in Putin’s home city of St. Petersburg, leaving at least 13 injured. According to the Russian Investigative Committee, preliminary data shows that a device stuffed with damage agents is likely to be the cause for the explosion.
The Russian leader has reminded that the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) had recently averted another terrorist attack in the city.
Earlier in December, the Kremlin press service said Putin spoke with his US counterpart Donald Trump by phone to express his gratitude after the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) provided information that terrorists were preparing attacks in St. Petersburg.
Fight Against Terrorism in Syria
Speaking about the fight against terrorism in Syria, Putin said that all the tasks set before the Russian forces have been fulfilled.
He said the Syrian army, with the support of Russia’s combat jets and navy, liberated nearly the entire territory of the country from terrorists — over 1,000 settlements.
“More than 48,000 officers and soldiers have taken part in the operation in Syria over the past two years. They are representatives of nearly all military professions — pilots and sailors, special forces and military police, sappers, scouts, communications officers, medical and logistics specialists, command officers and military advisers,” Putin said at a meeting with the Russian servicemen who had returned from Syria.
“Russia’s army and navy fully demonstrated their increased capabilities, successfully used state-of-the-art weapons and equipment. Aerospace Forces pilots carried out 34,000 sorties, 166 high precision missile strikes were made on facilities,” the president added.
According to Putin, Russia’s bases in Hmeymim and Tartus would be permanent, adding that “this is an important factor in protecting our national interests and ensuring Russia’s security in one of the key strategic directions.”
During his surprise visit to the Hmeymim airbase on December 11, Putin ordered to start the withdrawal of the main part of Russian troop contingents back to their permanent location after major Daesh hotbeds have been eliminated by the Syrian government forces during an operation in the area of the Euphrates River.
Most recently, the president said that Russia would continue its fight against terrorism, including within Syrian territory, if it was necessary.
(Source: Sputnik)