A blast occurred at the Russian Consulate in Marseille, France, on Monday, with Moscow describing it as a possible terrorist attack. The explosion took place inside the consulate premises, and firefighters were deployed to the scene, Russian Consul General in Marseille, Stanislav Oranskiy, confirmed.
According to the consulate’s statement to Russian state news agency TASS, three explosive devices were thrown onto the grounds, one of which detonated, causing property damage but no casualties.
⚡️Explosion Inside Russian Consulate General in 🇫🇷 Marseille – La Marseillaise citing Consul General
Reports suggests unknown attacks threw containers into the grounds of the Russian consulate, according to police. pic.twitter.com/fN7rXsm0tz
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) February 24, 2025
Commenting on the incident, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, “The explosions on the territory of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille have all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack.” She added that Moscow would demand that Paris take “comprehensive and prompt measures to investigate, as well as steps to strengthen the security of Russian foreign missions”, TASS reported
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Projectiles Thrown At Russian Consulate On Third Anniversary Of Ukraine War
A French security source told Reuters that two projectiles were thrown at the consulate’s perimeter wall, with one exploding. It was not immediately clear if the projectiles cleared the wall. French broadcaster BFM TV reported that the projectiles were Molotov cocktails and landed in the consulate’s garden.
Following the incident, consulate staff were kept indoors, and police established a security perimeter around the premises, as per Reuters. Local media reported that police are investigating the attack and are looking into a stolen vehicle found near the scene.
The explosion occurred on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war. Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) had warned last week that Ukraine could target Moscow’s diplomatic missions in Europe to disrupt peace talks, suggesting such attacks might be aimed at preventing Kiev from making “excessive concessions” in negotiations with Russia.
Moscow has demanded a full investigation from French authorities.
