Key Points
The death toll from a series of brazen attacks on churches and synagogues in Russias mainly Muslim region of Dagestan rose to 20 on Monday after gunmen went on the rampage in coordinated attacks in two of the republics most important cities...
Gunmen with automatic weapons burst into an Orthodox church and a synagogue in the ancient city of Derbent on Sunday evening, setting fire to an icon at the church and killing a 66-year-old Orthodox priest, Nikolai Kotelnikov...
This is a day of tragedy for Dagestan and the whole country, said Sergei Melikov, the head of the Dagestan region, who on Monday visited the synagogue and church that were attacked in Derbent...
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and conveyed his condolences, a spokesperson said.. Derbent, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on earth, is home to an ancient Jewish community and a UNESCO World Heritage site...
Russias state media cited law enforcement as saying two sons of Magomed Omarov, the head of central Dagestans Sergokala district, were among the attackers in Dagestan..
