Wednesday, June 26, 2024 - The death toll in the Russian terror attack has climbed to 16 after gunmen attacked religious sites in southern Russia on Sunday, June 23.
The attacks unfolded in several locations in the tinderbox
region of Dagestan, a largely Muslim region of Russia that borders Georgia
and Azerbaijan.
A synagogue in the regional capital Makhachkala was set
alight, while another group of attackers set fire to a second synagogue in
Derbent, the southernmost city in Russia which lies roughly 80 miles further
south.
There the gunmen also attacked an Orthodox church where they
reportedly slit the throat of a priest named locally as 66-year-old Father
Nikolai Kotelnikov who served more than 40 years in Derbent.
Authorities announced a counter-terrorist operation was
underway in the region, although there was confusion about how many militants
were involved in the attacks.
The Anti-Terrorist Committee said five gunmen were
'eliminated'. The governor said six 'bandits' had been 'liquidated'.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the
attacks as the authorities launched a criminal investigation on the charge of a
terrorist act.
But Russian state news agency Tass revealed that
Magomed Omarov, the head of Dagestan's Sergokalinsky district, was arrested
after officers learned his son had taken part in the attacks.
The synagogue attacked and set alight by the gunmen in the city is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The chairman of the public council of Russia's Federation of
Jewish Communities, Boruch Gorin wrote late last night that 'it has not been
possible to extinguish the fire' at the synagogue.
He added: 'The synagogue in Makhachkala has also been set on
fire and burnt down.'
Gorin wrote that in Derbent, firefighters had been told to
leave the burning synagogue because of the risk that 'terrorists remained
inside'.
In a video statement this morning, Dagestan regional
governor Sergei Melikov said that the situation in the region was now under
control of the law enforcement and local authorities.
He vowed that the investigation will continue until 'all the
sleeping cells' of the militants are uncovered.
He claimed, without providing evidence, that the attacks
might have been prepared from abroad and referenced what the Kremlin calls 'the
special military operation' in Ukraine in an apparent attempt to link the
attacks.
That update followed a message he shared last night in which
he stated: 'Tonight in Derbent and Makhachkala, unknown individuals attempted
to destabilise the public situation.
'Dagestan police officers stood in their way. According to
preliminary information, there are casualties among them.'
The attacks on the religious sites across Dagestan come just
months after a deadly terrorist attack in Moscow took the lives of nearly
145 people.
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