Solved case · 2024
The short answer
On 23 August 2024, four inmates at the IK-19 penal colony in Surovikino, Russia, attacked guards and took 12 people hostage, killing three prison staff before National Guard snipers killed all four attackers and rescued the hostages.
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Suggest coverage for Surovikino penal colony hostage crisisOn 23 August 2024, four inmates attacked guards at the IK-19 penal colony in Surovikino, Volgograd Oblast, southern Russia, and took hostages. Unconfirmed reports suggested the attackers had links to the Islamic State, and the attackers themselves claimed they were acting in revenge for detained suspects in the March 2024 Crocus City Hall attack.
The assault began at 16:00 during a meeting of the colony's disciplinary committee. The attackers took 12 hostages in total, including eight prison staff members and four inmates. Three prison employees were killed during the incident, and four other people were injured. The assault ended at 16:58, with all hostages rescued. The four attackers were killed by snipers from the National Guard of Russia. In the aftermath, two additional prison employees died of their injuries in hospital — one on the day of the attack, 23 August, and another on 26 August 2024.
The four perpetrators were identified as nationals of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Three had been convicted for drug trafficking, and the fourth for killing a person during a brawl. During the hostage-taking, the men released videos pledging allegiance to the Islamic State and stating that their action was in revenge for the Islamic State perpetrators of the Crocus City Hall attack.
On 29 August, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Surovikino attack in its weekly "Al-Naba" newsletter. The same claim also covered the Rostov-on-Don pre-trial detention center hostage crisis, which had occurred two months earlier in June 2024 with no reported casualties; the newsletter praised the attackers in both incidents and noted similarities between the two revolts.
Following a similar earlier incident in Rostov, heads of local prisons stated that they considered themselves always prepared for such situations and that no new precautions were needed. State Duma deputy Alexander Khinshtein criticized corruption within the penal colony system, alleging that workers had sold knives and phones to militants despite the heightened threat environment.
At 16:00, four inmates attacked guards at the IK-19 penal colony in Surovikino during a disciplinary committee meeting, taking 12 hostages including eight prison staff and four inmates.
At 16:58, the assault ended; all hostages were rescued and the four attackers were killed by National Guard of Russia snipers. Three prison employees had been killed and four other people injured during the attack; one injured prison employee died in hospital the same day.
A second prison employee died in hospital of injuries sustained during the attack.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Surovikino attack, and for the June 2024 Rostov-on-Don pre-trial detention center hostage crisis, in its weekly "Al-Naba" newsletter.
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State Duma deputy who publicly criticized corruption in the penal colony, alleging staff sold knives and phones to militants[3]
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