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Russia says prison hostage situation in Volgograd resolved

August 23, 2024

The National Guard said four inmates who had taken prison staff hostage had been "neutralized." The prisoners had identified themselves as militants of the so-called "Islamic State" (IS) group.

https://p.dw.com/p/4jraL
An ambulance is seen outside maximum security penal colony No 19 in the town of Surovikino on August 23
Some hostages had died in the prison siege, Russian authorities sayImage: Dmitry Rogulin/TASS/dpa/picture alliance

Russian security forces said Friday they have resolved a hostage situation in a prison in the southern Volgograd region. 

The Russian security forces said they "neutralized" four inmates who had taken staff hostage.

"Special National Guard sniper units neutralized four prisoners who had taken colony staff hostage, with four accurate shots. The hostages were released," the agency said in a statement posted on messaging platform Telegram.

Volgograd Governor Andrey Bocharov said that some hostages were killed.

"Unfortunately, there are people dead from the actions of the criminals," Bocharov said in a statement on Telegram, without specifying how many people the attackers had killed.

What do we know about the incident?

The knife-wielding inmates identified themselves as members of the so-called "Islamic State" group, on a video purportedly filmed by the attackers which has been circulating. 

At least one prison official was earlier reported killed. The video also showed two others lying bloodied and motionless.

The four inmates were citizens of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, Russian media reported. Three of them were in jail for drug offenses, while the fourth was there for unpremeditated murder.

rmt/wd (Reuters, AFP)