Conflicting Claims About the Reasons for the Explosion of a Residential Building in Southern Russia

In Russia, the committee responsible for investigating the explosion of a building in Magnitogorsk reiterated that the cause of the incident is likely a gas leak. This statement came after an intelligence group monitoring extremist activities reported that the Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the explosion. Following the collapse of this building on the last day of 2018, 39 people were killed. Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Magnitogorsk after the incident to oversee the investigation. A baby, aged eleven months, was rescued from under the rubble after thirty-five hours. Svyatlana Petrenko, spokesperson for the investigative committee, told Interfax on Friday: "Investigators have considered all possible theories regarding this tragedy from the very first day, and the theory that a domestic gas explosion caused this incident has been prioritized." Ms. Petrenko also added that "no signs of explosives or related materials were found at the scene of the incident." These statements were made on January 18, following a report from the SITE group that ISIS claimed responsibility for the explosion of this building and another explosion of a bus in the southern Ural mountainous region. Meanwhile, two Russian media outlets, citing unnamed sources, reported that signs of explosives were found at the site of the building explosion, suggesting that the incident may have been terrorist-related. These reports, which cannot be independently verified, also indicate that the residential building explosion on January 1 is linked to the explosion of a van on January 2, which left three dead. The site of the van explosion was about three kilometers away from the building. Over the past 25 years, explosions of residential buildings in Russia have sometimes been attributed to armed individuals from the North Caucasus. Gas leaks have also been cited as other causes of such explosions.