Russian special forces successfully rescued two prison guards and neutralized several assailants with alleged links to ISIL during an operation at a pre-trial detention centre in Rostov-on-Don. The guards had been taken hostage by six detainees earlier on Sunday, prompting the prison service to initiate negotiations for their release. However, the situation quickly escalated, leading to a decision to launch a special operation.
The Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia confirmed that the siege had ended, stating that the “criminals were eliminated.” The hostages were freed unharmed, and no injuries were reported. According to police sources cited by Russian media, the hostage-takers were believed to have connections to the ISIL group.
Reports from the scene described the sound of gunfire, while footage on social media showed multiple ambulances arriving at the detention centre. Images shared online depicted at least two of the hostage-takers wearing headbands resembling the ISIL flag, with other pictures showing prisoners brandishing knives. The attackers had managed to break the bars of a window in their cell, gaining access to a guard room where they took the prison officers hostage.
Earlier, law enforcement sources had revealed that the hostage-takers, armed with a penknife, a rubber baton, and a fire axe, were located in the central courtyard of Detention Center No 1 in the Rostov-on-Don region. The hostage-takers demanded a vehicle and safe passage out of the prison in exchange for releasing the hostages. The fate of all six assailants remains unclear, as it has not been confirmed how many were killed during the operation.
This incident follows a deadly attack three months ago, where gunmen opened fire at a concert hall near Moscow, resulting in the deaths of at least 144 people. It was the deadliest attack on Russian soil since the Beslan massacre a decade ago. Four suspects from Tajikistan were arrested, and ISIL claimed responsibility for the attack.
