Police officers and priest among 15 killed after attacks on places of worship in southern Russia – Washington Examiner

At least fifteen were killed around places of worship in Russia’s Dagestan province, including police officers and a priest, authorities said on Sunday.

Gunmen opened fire on churches and synagogues in two cities miles apart, the region’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said, and a shooting was also reported at a police checkpoint. At least 25 people were injured in the attacks.

In Derbent, a group of gunmen reportedly used automatic weapons on a synagogue and an Orthodox church, also setting fire to both buildings. A priest and church security guard were killed there, as well as four “militants,” according to Russian news agency TASS.

About 75 miles north along the Caspian Sea, in Makhachkala, 19 people locked themselves in a church during a shootout that ended with at least one attacker being killed, per the ministry. Attacks were also reported at a synagogue in that city.

“Tonight in Derbent and Makhachkala, unknown people made attempts to destabilise the public situation,” Sergei Melikov, the head of the Republic of Dagestan, said. “Dagestan police officers stood in their way. According to preliminary information, there are casualties among them. All services are acting in accordance with the instruction … The identities of the attackers are being established.”

Derbent is home to a historically significant Jewish community in the largely Muslim-dominated region. The Israeli foreign ministry called the shootings a “combined attack” on the synagogues.

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“As far as is known, there were no worshipers in the synagogues at the time of the attack, and there are no known casualties from the Jewish community,” it said in a statement.

The attackers were members of “an international terrorist organization,” according to TASS, citing local law enforcement agencies, and the investigation is being treated as such.