Tajikistan labels the murder of a 10-year-old Tajik student by a 15-year-old classmate in a Moscow suburb school yesterday as an “attack driven by ethnic hate”. The Foreign Ministry issues a strong condemnation of the Odintsovo school incident.
In an unusual move, Tajikistan summons the Russian ambassador in Dushanbe and delivers a note demanding Russia conduct an immediate, objective and impartial investigation, bringing all responsible parties to justice.
The ministry expresses concerns that this killing could incite extremist nationalist groups to commit similar acts.
Attacker’s plan and neo-Nazi links
The 15-year-old entered the school yesterday morning wearing a balaclava and a t-shirt reading “No Lives Matter”, a slogan linked to a neo-Nazi group, Russian media report. He attacks the school guard with a knife, then turns on a group of children, injuring several and killing the 10-year-old Tajik boy.
Unverified Telegram videos and photos show him unpacking boxes wrapped in tape and electrical wires resembling improvised explosives in the toilets. He then exits armed with the knife, asks a group of children about their nationalities, and attacks them.
Russia’s investigative committee confirms only that authorities arrested and detained the perpetrator.
Russian outlets like Komsomolskaya Pravda and Kommersant report he subscribed to neo-Nazi channels and sent classmates a racist manifesto days before the attack.
Vulnerable Tajik community in Russia
Hundreds of thousands of Tajiks live and work in Russia, many holding Russian citizenship. The World Bank notes remittances to Tajikistan families equal half the Central Asian country’s GDP.
Tajiks face forced conscription into the Russian army for the Ukraine war and stricter migration policies recently.
After Tajik suspects in the March 2024 Moscow concert hall attack that killed 149 people, Vladimir Putin signs laws easing migrant detection and deportation.
Source: CNN Greece
Also read: US readies Russia sanctions if Putin rejects Ukraine peace deal
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