2017 Saint Petersburg Metro bombing

In 2016, ISIL had plotted to target St. Petersburg due to Russia's military involvement in Syria, resulting in arrests.[14] No public transport system in Russia had been bombed since the 2010 Moscow Metro bombings.[15]

ISIL propaganda was being circulated prior to this incident. It encouraged supporters to launch strikes on Moscow. ISIL propaganda showed bullet holes through Putin's head and a poster circulated before the attack of a falling Kremlin and included the message "We Will Burn Russia."[16] However, as some researchers have said, Russia faces a "sophisticated and complex" threat from domestic terrorism, linked to many different groups.[5]

Vladimir Putin was visiting Saint Petersburg, where he was born, on the day of the attack.[16]

Location of the two stations and the tunnel in the Saint Petersburg Metro where the explosion occurred.

On 3 April 2017, a device containing 200–300 grams (0.44–0.66 lb) of explosives detonated on a train travelling through a tunnel between the Sennaya Ploshchad and Tekhnologichesky Institut stations of the Saint Petersburg Metro.[11][17][18] According to a statement from the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the bomb was detonated on the third carriage of the train.[19] Eyewitnesses said the blast occurred near the door. Immediately after the explosion, smoke filled the platform. Video from social media showed multiple victims on the platform and a metal door twisted by the force of the blast.[19] Following reports of the explosion, all metro stations in Saint Petersburg were quickly closed.[11] In the late evening, metro services were resumed on Lines 3, 4, and 5.[9]

A second bomb was discovered and disarmed at Ploshchad Vosstaniya station.[20] The device had ball bearings, screws, and shrapnel[21] and was hidden within a fire extinguisher containing an equivalent of about 1 kilogram (2.2 lb) of TNT.[22] Jalilov's DNA was found on a bag which contained the extinguisher,[23] suggesting that he intentionally left this bag inside a carriage as witnessed by some passengers.[19][9]

Security was heightened after the attack. Metal detectors, installed countrywide following another metro attack seven years before, were all implemented after not having been in use for several years. The Moscow Metro security department said they were ready to assist the Saint Petersburg Metro in case of any help being needed.[24] Local media reported that authorities had found suspicious packages in three Moscow metro stations, Nagatinskaja, Savelovskaya and Ugrezhskaya (CIP). Authorities later cordoned off the area.[19] The security of Pulkovo International Airport was also heightened in response to the blast.[19] A possible suspect was sighted on Metro surveillance cameras, according to unconfirmed reports.[9] The Investigative Committee of Russia said the train operator's decision to drive it to the next station helped to avoid an even higher number of casualties.[25][26]

Because of the terrorist attack, security measures were also strengthened in the Nizhny Novgorod metro.[27]

Two weeks later, FSB released a statement says that Russian security operatives have detained Abror Azimov (born 1990), the alleged mastermind of the bombing, in Moscow in which he trained the suicide attacker.

Fifteen people died due to the attack, of whom seven during the attack and eight later from their injuries. As reported by the Russian Ministry of Health, 64 people were injured.[28][29] Thirty-nine people were hospitalised, of whom six had critical injuries.[29] Children were among those injured.[8]

The fifteen people killed were identified as thirteen Russian citizens, a Kazakh man and an Azerbaijani woman.[30][31][32][33][34][35]

The suspected perpetrator behind the attacks was identified by Kyrgyzstan and Russian intelligence services as Akbarzhon Jalilov (sometimes spelled Akbarjon Djalilov), an ethnic Uzbek[36][37][38] 22-year-old Kyrgyz-born Russian citizen.[23][39][40] He was sentenced to life in prison.

Jalilov was born in 1995 in Osh, Kyrgyzstan, and arrived in Moscow around 2011.[39] According to Russian newspaper Moskovskij Komsomolets, Gazeta.ru reported he had worked as a cook at a sushi bar in 2015,[19][41] while other sources claimed Jalilov had worked in a garage before disappearing weeks prior to the attack.[19] Interfax said authorities believe he had ties to radical Islamic groups.[42] Russian media has reported that he traveled to Syria in 2014 and trained with Islamic State militants.[43] On 26 April, a group called the Imam Shamil Battalion has claimed responsibility the attack, and said that the bomber was acting on orders from al-Qaeda. The statement, posted by SITE Intelligence Group, said the bomber, Akbarzhon Jalilov, had acted on instructions from al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.[44][45] In considering the incident, researchers had already illustrated that 'analysis should not focus exclusively on recent developments and Daesh', but rather look at the 'broader context' including the 'range of groups with which Central Asian radicals are involved.'[46]

• Media related to 2017 Saint Petersburg Metro bombing at Wikimedia Commons