NEW DELHI: At least 15 police officers died and twelve others sustained injuries in a series of attacks that took place in Dagestan, according to local interior ministry sources cited by Russian news agencies.
The assailants targeted a synagogue, an Orthodox church, and a police post in the North Caucasus region of Dagestan on Sunday.
The interior ministry, as reported by Russian news agencies, confirmed that at least three individuals, including two police officers, were killed in the incidents, while thirteen others were wounded.
In Derbent, a city known for its ancient Jewish community and recognized as a UNESCO world heritage site, one officer and a priest were fatally shot when the attackers opened fire at a synagogue and a church.
The interior ministry stated, "Unidentified people fired at a synagogue and a church with automatic weapons.
One police officer was killed and one injured." Following the attack, the synagogue was reported to be on fire, and the perpetrators escaped in a vehicle.
Another police officer lost his life during a shootout at a police post in Makhachkala, situated approximately 125 km (75 miles) north of Derbent along the Caspian Sea coast. Makhachkala, the capital city of Dagestan, a predominantly Muslim region in southern Russia, later witnessed fighting in its streets.