Just days after the CIA helped to thwart a terrorist attack on the iconic Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg, a huge explosion at a nearby busy Perekrestok supermarket in the city’s northeast around 6:30 pm local time has left at least 10 injured according to early reports.
Sputnik news agency reports the explosion is believed to have been caused by a bomb packed with shrapnel in a storage locker. A statement from the Russian Investigative Committee says a preliminary assessment by experts have determined the IED blast was equivalent to 200 grams of TNT and “filled with projectiles.”
Russian authorities believe it was a deliberate attempt to kill after the thwarted St. Petersburg plot led to arrests and the seizure of large quantities of explosive and jihadist propaganda.
An official told TASS news agency: “There was a bang. Emergency personnel are already on the scene. The evacuation has been completed, and there was no fire.”
