MOSCOW — More than 15 police officers and several civilians, including an Orthodox priest, were killed by militants in Russia's southern republic of Dagestan on Sunday, Governor Sergei Melikov said in a video statement early Monday.
Authorities said gunmen opened fire on two Orthodox churches, a synagogue and a police station in the two cities.
Russia's National Anti-Terrorist Committee defined the attack, which occurred in a Muslim-majority region with a history of armed struggle, as an act of terrorism.
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were declared days of mourning in the region.
Dagestan's Interior Ministry said armed men opened fire at a synagogue and church in the city of Derbent, located on the Caspian Sea. According to state media, both the church and synagogue were set on fire. Almost simultaneously, reports emerged of attacks on churches and a traffic police station in Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan.
Authorities announced a counter-terrorism operation in the area. The Counter-Terrorism Commission said the five gunmen had been “eliminated”. The governor said six ‘bandits’ had been ‘liquidated’. Conflicting numbers could not be immediately reconciled and it was not clear how many militants were involved in the attack.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Authorities have launched a criminal investigation into alleged acts of terrorism.
Russian state news agency Tass, citing law enforcement sources, said a Dagestani official had been detained on suspicion of his sons' involvement in the attack.