Three days of mourning have begun in Russia’s predominantly Muslim Republic of Dagestan after a spate of terror attacks on Sunday (June 23) left a Russian Orthodox priest, three other civilians and at least 15 police officers dead, Russian officials said.
The assailants attacked a Russian Orthodox church in the coastal city of Derbent and another in the Dagestan capital, Makhachkala. Also attacked in Derbent was a synagogue, and both the church building and the synagogue reportedly caught fire.
Another synagogue was reportedly set on fire in Makhachkala.
Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement that five of the assailants, described as terrorists, were killed, while Sergey Melikov, head of the Dagestan Republic, said at least six “militants” were killed.
Dagestan Interior Ministry spokeswoman Gayana Gariyeva reportedly told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency that a 66-year-old Russian Orthodox priest was slain. The BBC named the priest as the Rev. Nikolai Kotelnikov, who served the parish in Derbent for more than 40 years. The Washington Post reported that he led the Church of Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Derbent.
“According to the information I received, Father Nikolay was killed in the church in Derbent, they slit his throat. He was 66-years-old and very ill,” Shamil Khadulaev, chairman of Dagestan’s Public Monitoring Commission, reportedly said.
Members of the priest’s family witnessed the killing, according to Russian newspaper Izvestia. He left behind his wife, three children and grandchildren.
The assailants reportedly opened fire at the church building and synagogue at 6 p.m. Officials said they escaped in a white Volkswagen Polo car. Videos published online after the attack show the synagogue ablaze.
At nearly the same time in Makhachkala, another Russian Orthodox church was attacked, and 15 police officers were killed. A synagogue was also attacked in Makhachkala, according to a statement from the Russian Jewish Congress (RJC).
TASS reported that a security guard was killed in a shootout at the cathedral in Makhachkala, where 19 people had locked themselves inside, according to CNN. They have since been safely evacuated, TASS reported, citing the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Dagestan.
A member of the national guard was also reported slain, and 12 law enforcement officers were injured.
“This is a day of tragedy for Dagestan and the whole country,” posted Sergei Melikov, governor of the Dagestan region, on the Telegram messaging app. “We understand who is behind the organization of the terrorist attacks and what goal they pursued.”
The governor, however, gave no further details, according to Reuters. He vowed that law enforcement would continue the search until all of the gunmen were identified. Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee reportedly described the attacks in the predominantly Muslim region with a history of armed militancy as terrorist acts. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Security force launched a manhunt to find the assailants of the attacks, which happened about 128 kilometers (80 miles) apart. State media in Russia claimed that two detained attackers were sons linked to the head of central Dagestan’s Sergokala District, according to Reuters.
Dagestan’s Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia said it was investigating the circumstances and persons “involved in the terrorist attacks.”
“Tonight in Derbent and Makhachkala, unknown people made attempts to destabilize the public situation,” Melikov reportedly said on Sunday (June 23). “Dagestan police officers stood in their way.”
Located at Russia’s southernmost point, Dagestan is a mountainous region with 40 ethnicities bordering Georgia and Azerbaijan. Official figures say the population is 3.2 million, the vast majority Sunni Muslims.
Russian has long fought an Islamist insurgency in the Muslim-majority North Caucasus, including many Dagestanis who left to join the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for an attack on a Moscow concert venue in March that killed 137 people. Muslim extremists have often attacked Christian and Jewish sites in Dagestan; in 2018, gunman opened fire on member of a church in Kizlyar, killing five women.
