ADVERTISEMENT

       Foreign diplomats from the United States, EU countries, Africa and Latin America have joined thousands who laid flowers, wreaths and other tokens such as teddy bears, to create a makeshift memorial outside the Crocus City Hall music.

       At least 144 people were killed and 551 were injured when gunmen shot at thousands of concertgoers and set the building alight on 22 March, the deadliest attack in the country in years.

       The carnage happened before a concert at the venue in Krasnogorsk, a northern Moscow suburb, by the band Picnic.

       Russian authorities arrested four Tajikistan nationals - Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, Saidakram Rachabalizoda, Shamsidin Fariduni and Muhammadsobir Faizov - on the day of the attack.

       9 detained in Tajikstan over Moscow concert hall shooting

       The Kremlin says the men were trying to flee to Ukraine when they were captured; Kyiv has denied any involvement and called Moscow's claims ''absurd''.

       An affiliate of the Islamic State group (ISIS) claimed responsibility for the attack in a short statement published by news agency Amaq on Telegram but did not provide evidence to support the claim.

       A total of nine suspects have faced court, some of whom appear to have been beaten, and have been remanded in pre-trial detention.

       Four of the men are charged with the offence of 'terror attack committed by a group of individuals resulting in a person’s death'.

       Russia's Investigative Committee said it had detained one person on suspicion of financing the attack. It did not give further details of the suspect's identity or alleged actions.

       ADVERTISEMENT

       A three-ship convoy the Cypriot port of Larnaca on Saturday with 400 tonnes of food and other supplies as concerns about hunger in the territory soar.

       The vessels and a barge were carrying ready-to-eat items like rice, pasta, flour, legumes, canned vegetables and proteins.

       Also on board were dates, which are traditionally eaten to break the daily fast during the holy month of Ramadan.

       US charity World Central Kitchen said the ship, named Jennifer, was due to follow the inaugural voyage of the Cyprus-Gaza sea route earlier this month by the Open Arms vessel that delivered 200 tonnes of food and water.

       The United Nations and partners have warned that famine could occur in devastated, largely isolated northern Gaza as early as this month.

       Humanitarian officials say deliveries by sea and air are not enough and that Israel must allow far more aid by road.

       The top UN court has ordered Israel to open more land crossings and take other measures to address the humanitarian crisis.

       The fighting has displaced over 80 per cent of Gaza’s population and pushed hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine, the UN and international aid agencies say.

       Israel’s military said it continued to strike dozens of targets in Gaza, days after the United Nations Security Council issued its first demand for a cease-fire.

       During an airdrop on Friday, the US military said it had released over 100 thousand pounds of aid that day (over 45 thousand kilos) and almost a million pounds overall (453 thousand kilos) as part of a multi-country effort.

       ADVERTISEMENT

       Dutch police detained a man Saturday after he left a nightclub where hostages had been held, apparently bringing a peaceful end to a tense, hours-long standoff.

       “The last hostage has just been released. One person was arrested. We cannot give more information at the moment,” police said in a message on X.

       The man walked out of the club and was ordered by armed police to kneel with his hands on his head. He was then handcuffed before being led into a waiting police car.

       Earlier, three young hostages left the Cafe Petticoat in the central town of Ede. A fourth person was released shortly before the suspect was arrested.

       Heavily armed police and special arrest teams, some wearing masks, had gathered outside the popular club. Some 150 nearby homes were evacuated.

       Before the latest developments, Ede Mayor René Verhulst called the standoff a “terrible situation for all these people. My concern and thoughts go out to them and their loved ones. I hope that the situation is now resolved quickly and safely.”

       Ede is a rural market town 85 kilometres southeast of Amsterdam. The municipality said that all shops in the centre of the town would remain closed while the situation continued. Trains to and from the town's station also were halted.