REVISES LEDE WITH ADDITIONAL INFO. THROUGHOUT NEW DETAILS
By Muhammed Yasin Gungor and Gizem Nisa Cebi
ISTANBUL (AA) – Unknown terrorists attacked multiple locations on Sunday in the Russian Republic of Dagestan, including a synagogue, two churches, a roadside gas station, and a police security checkpoint, killing at least six police officers and a priest and injuring 12 others, officials confirmed.
According to a statement issued by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, unidentified armed individuals attacked Makhachkala and Derbent cities around 1500GMT.
The attackers targeted a police checkpoint in Makhachkala, as well as two churches and a synagogue in Derbent, killing six police officers and injuring 12 others, the statement said.
It also mentioned the death of a priest and the ongoing armed conflict between security forces and the attackers.
Video footage on social media shows a fire broke out at the synagogue in Derbent.
Earlier, Shamil Khadulaev, deputy chairman of Dagestan's public monitoring commission, said a clergyman and a security officer from an Orthodox church in Derbent and Makhachkala, were killed in the assaults.
The attackers reportedly used automatic weapons during the assault on the synagogue, according to Gayan Garieva, head of the press service of the Dagestan Ministry of Internal Affairs.
"Around 6 pm local time (1500GMT) in Derbent, unknown individuals fired automatic weapons at a synagogue and a church," she said.
The synagogue and a police car were engulfed in flames in the attack, according to local media reports.
Sputnik also reported that the suspects fled in a white Volkswagen Polo bearing license plate 921.
It added that almost simultaneously, unidentified individuals attacked a roadside gas station on a street in Makhachkala.
In response to the attacks, authorities have imposed security cordons in Makhachkala and Derbent, stepping up efforts to net the attackers.
Russia's Investigative Committee issued the following statement: "The Investigative Committee of Russia in the Republic of Dagestan initiated criminal cases under Art. 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (terrorist act) on the facts of armed attacks in Derbent and Makhachkala, as a result of which police officers and civilians were killed and injured."
It added that they are currently investigating the incident and determining who was responsible for the terrorist attacks.
"Investigators and forensic investigators are on the scene," it said.