New Year holidays TERRORIST ATTACK in St. Petersburg averted after US tip-off: FSB releases VIDEO of suspects’ arrest

The FSB released footage showing two terrorist suspects being detained by operatives in St. Petersburg. The pair have been plotting high-profile attacks over the New Year holidays in Russia’s second-largest city.

The video, made public by the security service this Monday, shows an entry team surrounding and handcuffing one of the men – said to be a Russian citizen – in the stairwell of a multi-story building. The camera then jumps to the moment his flat was thoroughly searched, uncovering a cache of shotgun cartridges, combat knives, and electric wires. 

His accomplice, also a Russian national, appears on another video while presumably pledging allegiance to Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) in Arabic.

The FSB didn’t expand much on the arrests, but said it secured enough evidence proving the suspects were planning to carry out terrorist attacks in St. Petersburg.

© FSB

Previously, it confirmed it received a tip-off “from our American partners” which allowed the operatives to track the would-be terrorists and thwart their plans. The successful operation was discussed on the highest level, with Vladimir Putin thanking Donald Trump for sharing the crucial intelligence.

The presidents talked on the phone, and agreed to carry on cooperation in combatting terrorism, the Kremlin revealed.

During a closed session on Monday, a district court in St. Petersburg ordered the detention of both suspects pending the investigation. Georgy Chernov and Nikita Semyonov will remain in custody until at least the end of February 2020.

Subscribe to RT newsletter to get stories the mainstream media won’t tell you.