Dagestan chaos: Gunfire, street fights, and National Guard deployed
A tense situation unfolds in Russia's Dagestan. After attacks on churches, a synagogue, and a police station, regular street fights have erupted. Authorities in Moscow decided to deploy the National Guard. The exact number of casualties is unknown.
3:51 PM EDT, June 23, 2024
Media reports that gunfire can still be heard in the streets of both Derbent and Makhachkala. Dagestan authorities are urging residents to stay in their homes. The National Anti-Terrorism Committee announced that a counterterrorism operation (CTO) has been implemented "to ensure citizens' safety, suppress terrorist crimes, and detain those involved in the armed attack."
A plan has been announced in Dagestan to intercept the terrorists. Efforts are ongoing to establish the attackers' identities. Media have also published images of them.
"In Derbent, a residential building is currently under siege, aimed at eliminating the militants," reported local media. According to Russian law enforcement, the attackers in Makhachkala and Derbent are supporters of an international terrorist organization.
In Makhachkala, gunfire also continues.
Media also report that the central part of Derbent is without power. Clashes continue in the city.
Reports have emerged of people trapped in a temple in Makhachkala.
Casualty report
Information about different casualty counts is coming in. The number of people killed in Dagestan due to the militant attack has risen to nine. Seven of them are law enforcement officers. Twenty-five people have been injured, according to NEXTA. During the attack on the church in Derbent, a priest was killed with his throat cut, reports the DPA agency, citing the Russian Investigative Committee.
"On Magomedtarigova Street in Makhachkala, clashes are ongoing between police and militants. So far, four militants have been eliminated," reports the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Dagestan. At least two more were detained in the Berezka beach area.
Attacks in Dagestan
"According to information from the press office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Dagestan, around 10 AM Eastern Time in Derbent, unknown individuals with automatic weapons opened fire on a synagogue and a church," stated Gajana Garijewa, head of the Ministry's press service.
At the time of the attack on the temple in Derbent, people were inside, but according to preliminary information, they managed to avoid confrontation with the extremists. As a result of the militant attack, the church and synagogue burned down," reports TASS.
An attack also occurred in Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, where the assailants fired on a police station and a church.
