Over 15 people, including priest, killed in ‘terrorist acts’ in Russia

More than 15 people, including policemen, an Orthodox priest and civilians, were killed, and several others were injured in an attack by terrorists in Russia’s southern republic of Dagestan on Sunday.

The attacks were reported in churches, synagogues and a police traffic stop in the cities of Derbent and Makhachkala – which are about 120 km apart, the Russian authorities said.

Here are the top updates on the deadly attacks in Russia:

Dagestan’s interior ministry on Sunday said that a group of armed men shot at a synagogue and a church in the city of Derbent, located on the Caspian Sea in Russia, following which both the structures caught fire. Several pictures on social media showed large flames and plumes of smoke billowing heavily out of a series of windows. Simultaneously, an attack also took place on a church and a traffic police post in the Dagestan capital, Makhachkala.

Among the people who were killed in the attack, seven were law enforcement officers, a priest, and a church security guard, reported AP, citing Russian authorities.

According to reports, the armed men slit the throat of the priest – Father Nikolay – in the church in Derbent, while the security guard was shot dead. One of the law enforcement officers killed in the attack was the head of the ‘Dagestan Lights’ police department, reported AP, citing the Dagestan ministry of internal affairs.

Reportedly, during the attack on a church in Makhachkala, 19 people locked themselves in for safety.

Following the attack, the Russian authorities launched a counter-terrorist operation. During this, at least four attackers have also been killed, reported Russian media.

According to Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee, the attacks – predominantly in the Muslim regions with a history of armed terrorism – were “terrorist acts”.

The investigative directorate of the investigative committee of Russia for the Republic of Dagestan said it had initiated a “terror investigation” into the attacks under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, reported AP, citing CNN. “All the circumstances of the incident and the persons involved in the terrorist attacks are being established, and their actions will be given a legal assessment,” the investigative directorate said in a statement.

The head of the Dagestan Republic, Sergey Melikov, also released a statement on Telegram following the attacks, saying that “unknown persons made attempts to destabilize the social situation.” He also asserted that the attackers’ identities were being established, and an operational headquarters and a plan for a counter-operation ‘interception’ were being carried out. Melikov further called on people to remain calm saying, “Panic and fear are what they were counting on in … They won’t get this from Dagestanis.”

Meanwhile, according to the local media, a Dagestani official was detained over his son’s involvement in the attacks, reported AP.

The Russian authorities have declared three days of mourning in the region till Wednesday.