Information reaching Kossyderrickent has it that Priest, Fr. Nicholas Nikolai Kotelnikov, throat slit as he got beheaded by bearded gunmen in terrorist attack at Synagogue and several Orthodox Churches in in the Cities of Derbent and Makhachkala, Dagestan.
A shooting against two synagogues and two churches in Russia’s Dagestan left several police officers dead, according to a report in Interfax on Sunday.
The synagogue in Derbent was completedly burned down and local guards were killed, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry. The synagogue in Makhachkala was attacked by gunfire, the ministry said, with no further details available.
In addition, an earlier attack by unknown individuals on a police post in Makhachkala, killing one officer and wounding six others. Six police officers were killed and 12 others wounded in total.
Local reports showed gunfights still ongoing in Makhachkala. In what appears to be a coordinated attack that took place around the same time as the attacks on the church and synagogue, a police traffic post in Makhachkala, Dagestan, also came under fire.
At least one police officer was injured in the attack in Makhachkala, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The head of the Dagestan Republic, Sergey Melikov, has since issued a message on Telegram saying that “unknown persons made attempts to destabilize the social situation. Dagestan police officers stood in their way. According to preliminary information, there are victims among them.”
Melikov said the identities of the attackers are being established, an operational headquarters has been set up and a plan for a counteroperation “Interception” is underway.