'Terrorists Tried To Flee To Ukraine': Russian President Vladimir Putin On Moscow Concert Attack

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday said that the Moscow concert hall attackers tried to escape towards the border of Ukraine. However, Kyiv has denied involvement. 

In a statement Putin said, “...They tried to escape; they were moving toward the border of Ukraine...The investigative authority will do everything to identify them. These criminals went specifically to kill our people...We expect that other nations that share our pain to cooperate with us. These terrorists have no nationality..."

The death toll in the terror attack in Moscow's Crocus City Hall has risen to 93, according to the Russian Investigative Committee. The death toll is expected to rise further, the committee said Saturday.

The Islamic State group's Afghanistan branch claimed responsibility for Friday's attack in a statement posted on affiliated channels on social media. A U.S. intelligence official told The Associated Press that U.S. agencies had confirmed that the group was responsible for the attack.

However, some Russian politicians pointed the finger at Ukraine shortly after the attack - accusations that Ukraine has strongly denied.

Putin said all four people directly involved in the attack had been detained and suggested they were trying to cross the border into Ukraine while escaping. He provided no evidence for that claim.

Putin ordered that Sunday will be a nationwide day of mourning. The attack was the deadliest in Russia in years and left the concert hall a smoldering ruin.