Marseille Russian consulate explosion branded ‘terrorist attack’ by Moscow

Russia has said that its consulate in Marseille has been hit by an explosion ‘with all the hallmarks of a terror attack’.

Dozens of firefighters were called out to the site in the southern French city on Monday morning. A security source told Reuters that plastic bottles were thrown at the wall of the consulate and one exploded.

The French interior ministry has said there were no casualties from the blast and all staff and the Russian consul were unharmed. Russia’s consul general Stanislav Oranskiy said there was a blast inside the building and Moscow has demanded a full French investigation.

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“The explosions on the territory of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille have all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack,” TASS quoted Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying. “We demand (from France) exhaustive and prompt measures to investigate, as well as steps to strengthen the security of Russian foreign missions.”

The incident in the southern French city took place on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war.

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