Russia: Four Indian students among several injured in knife attack

Tragedy struck the serene campus of the State Medical University in Russia's Ufa, Bashkortostan Republic, on Saturday, as a sudden and violent knife attack left at least six people injured, including four Indian students.

The Indian Embassy described it as an “unfortunate incident” and confirmed that consulate officials from Kazan are rushing to Ufa to assist the wounded.

According to preliminary reports, the assailant — a 15-year-old teenager — entered a student dormitory armed with a knife, launching a frenzied assault on residents. In the chaos, two police officers who attempted to apprehend him were also stabbed, while the attacker inflicted injuries upon himself during the confrontation, interior ministry spokesperson major general Irina Volk told RTVI.com.

The Russian Federal Health Ministry confirmed that four victims are receiving medical attention, with one in serious condition and three in moderate condition. The young assailant is now hospitalized in serious condition at a local children’s facility.

Authorities in Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan located roughly 1,200 km east of Moscow, have initiated a high-level investigation into the shocking episode. Reports emerging from the Baza Telegram channel suggest a chilling ideological backdrop: the teenager allegedly belonged to the banned neo-Nazi organization NS/WP. Eyewitnesses claimed that during the attack, he shouted nationalist slogans and invoked Holocaust references, while a Swastika, drawn in the victims’ blood, was discovered on a dormitory wall.

Ren TV described harrowing scenes from the dormitory, with “blood all around” as ambulances ferried the injured to nearby hospitals.

The incident has left the campus community shaken, with authorities scrambling to ensure the safety of students and unravel the motives behind this brutal outburst. The Indian Embassy continues to closely monitor the situation and coordinate assistance for its nationals caught in the violent episode.

With PTI inputs