Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) announced the arrest of three suspects who planned terrorist attacks against Jewish institutions in the Krasnoyarsk and Stavropol regions.
In the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, two citizens from Central Asian countries were arrested for planning to detonate an explosive device at the local synagogue. A search of the hideout they had prepared found materials for making explosives.
At the same time, a Russian citizen was arrested in the city of Pyatigorsk in the Stavropol region after he planned to throw Molotov cocktails at the building of the Jewish community there. Molotov cocktails, knives and weapons were found during the search.
According to the FSB, the suspects planned to present the attacks as an action on behalf of the residents of Palestine who were affected by the war with Israel, but in reality their goal was to incite internal unrest in Russia. The attacks were planned by "supporters of an international terrorist organization that is outlawed in Russia," it said.
During the interrogation the suspects admitted that they planned to blow up synagogues. The security service published documentation of their arrest and the materials seized.