Dozens of missiles have already been fired at cities all over Ukraine in response to the terror attack, and this is probably just the initial wave.  The Russians are going to punish the Ukrainians for what they think that they have done, and that is likely to shift public opinion in the western world regarding sending ground troops into Ukraine.  Needless to say, once NATO troops are officially sent into Ukraine, we are just one step away from the unthinkable.

The attack that transpired on Friday was highly coordinated, and the men that did the shooting did not seem to care who they hit…

The men, clad in camouflage and with combat vests containing dozens of spare magazines, arrived at Crocus City Hall at about 7:40 p.m. in a minivan, leaping out of the back door and heading towards the entrance with their weapons, witnesses said.

They fired directly through the glass doors of the main entrance, shooting at anyone who crossed their path. Dozens of bodies, some in pools of blood, lay motionless on the marble floors and at the main entrance.

There were four shooters, and they just kept firing and firing.

Ironically, the thousands of people that were there had come to see a performance of a hit song entitled “Afraid of Nothing”…

The four armed men walked calmly towards the metal detectors at Crocus City Hall, firing their automatic weapons point-blank in short bursts at terrified civilians who fell screaming in a hail off bullets.

Nearby, one witness named Natalya had just taken off her coat and was standing in line on Friday evening at the internal entrance to the 6,200-seat concert hall outside Moscow, where Soviet-era rock group “Picnic” was to perform its hit “Afraid of Nothing.”

“The shots came from behind us,” Natalya, who asked for her surname not to be used, told Reuters.

In the aftermath of the attack, the Russians arrested eleven people, including all four shooters. It appears that all four shooters were Muslim. And they were shouting Islamic slogans as they were gunning people down.

So on the surface, it very much looks like an Islamic terror attack. And it is true that “ISIS-K” immediately took responsibility, a photo of the shooters was immediately posted by “ISIS-K” after the attack, and video footage that the shooters captured during their rampage has been released by “ISIS-K”.

So did ISIS-K really plan and carry out this attack? I don’t know. Maybe they did. But one of the shooters has supposedly confessed that he was hired to conduct this attack.

He also supposedly confessed that he does not know who hired him, because he was apparently recruited online.

So that is quite odd.

In addition, Russian President Vladimir Putin is claiming that the terrorists were captured as they were fleeing toward the Ukrainian border…

After the Friday night rampage at the venue just outside Moscow, “the perpetrators tried to escape by car, fleeing towards the Russian-Ukrainian border,” the FSB said Saturday “The criminals intended to cross the Russia-Ukraine border and had relevant contacts on the Ukrainian side,” the FSB statement alleged.

The four alleged gunmen were detained “not far from the border with Ukraine”. This has raised suspicion in the Kremlin over Ukraine’s involvement, despite the widespread media reports in the West that it was ISIS-K. As we noted earlier, Russian media has not echoed the Western reports highlighting an ISIS-K statement of responsibility.

If Ukraine had nothing to do with this attack, why were they going to Ukraine?

That wouldn’t make any sense.

So I don’t know what to think.

But U.S. officials seem quite sure that they know exactly what happened.  Right after the attack, they were absolutely certain that “ISIS-K” was responsible…

The initial reports that ISIS has claimed responsibility for the terror attack in Moscow appeared rumor at first, and has still been subject of widespread scrutiny and debate, however, US media and government officials are saying that the Islamic State (or ISIS-K) statement is authentic. “A branch of the Islamic State claimed responsibility on Friday for the attack in Moscow that killed at least 40 people and injured about 100 others, and U.S. officials confirmed the claim shortly afterward,” The New York Times writes late in the day.

And it turns out that U.S. officials apparently knew in advance that “ISIS-K” was planning to attack a public venue inside Russia…

What’s more is that US intelligence knew there was to be an imminent attack on Moscow: “The United States collected intelligence in March that Islamic State-Khorasan, known as ISIS-K, the branch of the group based in Afghanistan, had been planning an attack on Moscow, according to officials. ISIS members have been active in Russia, one U.S. official said,” according to more from NYT.

The Kremlin had earlier in the day demanded answers of Washington explaining why the US Embassy in Moscow issued an alert earlier this month for all US nationals to avoid public venues and be extra vigilant. We previously reported on that early March embassy notification here.

On March 7th, the U.S. embassy in Moscow warned that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts”.

Wow, that is pretty specific.

Is the U.S. intelligence community that good? Or is something else going on here? Once again, I don’t know.

But what matters is that the Russians appear to be entirely convinced that Ukraine is to blame.

Numerous Russian leaders have already publicly pointed a finger at the Ukrainians, and during his public remarks to the Russian people, Vladimir Putin made it pretty clear what he thinks…

In his speech Putin, declared March 24 a day of national mourning for the victims.

Unblinking and tight-lipped, he said: “I am speaking to you today in connection with the bloody, barbaric terrorist act, the victims of which were dozens of innocent, peaceful people.”

He continued: “All four perpetrators of the terrorist act who shot and killed people have been detained.

“They were travelling towards Ukraine … We will identify and punish everybody who stood behind the terrorists, who prepared the attack.”

As I write this article, dozens of missiles and drones have already hit targets all over Ukraine.

In fact, one missile briefly entered Polish airspace before going back into Ukraine…

Poland said it would demand an explanation from Moscow after a Russian missile briefly breached Polish airspace during a massive missile attack on Ukraine, prompting the Nato member to put its forces on heightened readiness.

Russia and Ukraine have been engaged in a series of deadly aerial attacks, with Sunday’s early morning strikes coming a day after the Russian military said it had seized the Ukrainian village of Ivanivske, west of Bakhmut.

Hopefully the Russians will be more careful in the future, because if a single missile lands in Poland that could set off a very alarming chain of events.

But it is inevitable that the missile barrage will continue, because the Russians want revenge.

The terror suspect that has already confessed reportedly told Russian authorities that he was promised a payment of $5,400 to be involved in the shooting…

On Saturday, RT Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan posted footage of the interrogation of one of the suspects. The man in the video claims that he went on the killing spree after he was promised 500,000 rubles ($5,400).

The suspect also claimed that his handlers had instructed him as to where the attack should take place. He said he was ordered to “kill people there… doesn’t matter who.” The suspect claimed that the terrorist act was organized on Telegram with an unknown person who provided weapons.

If any of this is true, we should all be extremely alarmed.

Because you would think that if this really was an “ISIS-K” operation, it would be “ISIS-K” bosses that would be giving the orders and providing the weapons.

But instead it appears that the people that were ultimately behind this attack did not wish to be identified and were seeking to hire some “useful idiots” that were disposable.

Of course it is true that any “confession” that is extracted under torture may not be reliable.

So perhaps everything that this suspect is saying is entirely false.

It is being reported that Russian troops actually cut an ear off of one of the suspects and tried to make him eat it…

Graphic and disturbing footage shows the moment one of the suspected Moscow terrorists is captured and mutilated while ‘fleeing towards the Ukrainian border.’

The footage, which has not been independently verified, shows the suspect pinned to the ground by armed Russian troops who cut off part of his ear with a small knife.‌

They then force the severed ear into his mouth and attempt to make him swallow it.

The alleged terrorist is also struck on the face and later appears heavily bandaged.

You don’t want to mess with Russians. They are brutal. And now the entire Russian population is seething with anger.

Ukraine is going to get hit so hard in the days ahead, and here in the western world the calls to send ground forces to help the Ukrainians will get louder and louder.

In recent weeks, French President Emmanuel Macron has stated on multiple occasions that there soon may come a time when NATO troops are needed in Ukraine.

Needless to say, not everyone in France is on board with this.  In fact, another French politician is warning that this could result in “direct war” with Russia…

A prominent NATO ally and lawmaker has warned of an imminent war between Russia and France as tensions between the countries mount over the war in Ukraine.

French politician Jordan Bardella raised concerns on Friday over the potential for a “direct war” with Russia if France, a NATO member, decides to deploy troops to Ukraine.

He is right.

Of course if French troops are sent to die in the trenches of eastern Ukraine, U.S. boys and girls would be sent to die in the trenches of eastern Ukraine too.

And once NATO forces and Russian forces are shooting at one another directly, we would be just one step away from nuclear war.

Recently, Americans were asked if they believe that World War III is coming, and the results were quite surprising…

According to a newly released survey from YouGov, 61 percent of Americans believe it is either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” that World War III will kick off within the next decade.

When looking at the results by political party, the pollsters found one-third of Republicans think it’s very likely that there will be another world war in the next decade; while 20 percent of Independents and 16 percent of Democrats agree.

“If another world war were to break out, 77% of Americans believe the U.S. would be involved. Just 6% say the U.S. would not be involved, and the remaining 18% are unsure,” YouGov reports.

What about you?

Do you believe that a global war is either coming or has already begun?

Personally, I would love to see peace.

Unfortunately, leaders all over the globe have come down with a very bad case of “war fever”, and now the terror attack that we just witnessed in Russia threatens to push the conflict in Ukraine to an entirely new level.

Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can check out his new Substack newsletter right here.