Attacks on police posts, churches, and a synagogue in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Dagestan have left 20 people and five gunmen dead.
At least 46 people were hospitalized with injuries following the Sunday evening attacks.
Three days of mourning have been declared in Dagestan, a predominantly Muslim republic in southern Russia neighboring Chechnya.
The apparently coordinated attacks targeted the cities of Derbent and Makhachkala during the Orthodox festival of Pentecost. An Orthodox priest, Father Nikolai Kotelnikov, who had served in Derbent for more than 40 years, was among those killed, as confirmed by the head of the Republic of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov.
On Sunday night, gunmen attacked a church and a synagogue in Derbent, home to an ancient Jewish community. In Makhachkala, Dagestan’s largest city, a church and a police post near a synagogue were also attacked.
Footage posted on social media showed people in dark clothes shooting at police cars in Makhachkala before a convoy of emergency service vehicles arrived at the scene.
Dagestan has previously been the site of Islamist attacks. Although the assailants have not been officially identified, Russian media widely reported that two sons of the head of the Sergokala district, Magomed Omarov, who was detained by police, were among the gunmen.
In a video posted on Telegram, Mr. Melikov suggested Ukraine might have been involved in the attack, implying that Dagestan is now directly involved in Russia’s war in Ukraine.