The hostage situation began on Sunday when a group of prisoners, some with terrorism convictions, reportedly broke out of their cells and into the facility’s duty station, overwhelming two officers.

The Russian Federal Penitentiary Service issued a statement confirming that two of its agents working with the penitentiary inspectorate were being held by undisclosed perpetrators. It noted that talks were underway and that law enforcement agencies were working at the scene.

Several outlets have reported that terrorists were among the hostage-takers. The Baza Telegram channel has claimed that there were six perpetrators, three of whom are serving sentences for belonging to Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS or ISIL) and preparing an attack on the Supreme Court in the Karachaevo-Cherkessian Republic in southern Russia.

The two hostages reportedly included the head of the operational department and a junior inspector of the duty service. The perpetrators reportedly demanded a vehicle to leave the prison.

A video shared on social media shows one of the assailants, armed with a knife and wearing a black do-rag with an inscription in Arabic, sitting next to one of the handcuffed hostages, who appeared to be unharmed. The other agent also appeared to be in unhurt, except for blood on his elbow.

The 112 Telegram channel reported that the inmates were blocked inside one of the areas of the detention center, and were unable to reach the gun room. Later, it said law enforcement agencies launched an assault on the detention center, as the talks did not yield any results. At least several shots were fired in the area, according to videos shared on social media. Baza noted that it took the law enforcement agents three minutes to storm the building.

The Federal Penitentiary Service confirmed that there had been “a special operation to free hostages in a detention center” in Rostov Region, adding that “the criminals were eliminated” and the hostages were not injured.

According to a report, 57% of survey respondents believe a global conflict could begin in the next 5-10 years, though 13% said they are confident this will not happen.

Among those surveyed, people aged 30-59 with higher education and who source news online were more likely to speak about a possible world war than those with lower education and income.

Around seven in ten of the 1,617 survey respondents named the US and Russia as the most likely parties in the hypothetical war, with the UK, France, Germany, Poland, and the Baltic States mentioned among Washington’s potential allies. Only one in ten respondents named Ukraine as a potential enemy of Russia in a global conflict. The respondents named China, Belarus, Iran, North Korea, India, and Kazakhstan as Russia’s main allies in the event of a global war.

More than 60% of respondents said they believe that Russia or a coalition led by Russia would win a world war, while only 6% said the US and the Collective West would achieve victory, and 18% believe that neither side would win.

The survey was conducted among 1,617 Russian citizens over 18 years old from May 23 to June 2. It also touched on the matter of support for Moscow’s military operation against Kiev. Almost three-quarters of respondents (73%) said they believe Russia is currently moving in the right direction with regard to the conflict, with 79% saying the operation is going well for the Russian army. Around half of the respondents believe it is time for peace talks and a diplomatic solution.

Warnings of a potential global conflict have been voiced repeatedly over the past two years, since the start of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. While Moscow has warned that growing Western involvement could spark a global war, and some Western analysts have said that a Russian victory will inevitably lead to this outcome, some officials and analysts believe that a world war has already begun given the scope of NATO and EU involvement.