Hours of tension at the airport in Machatchakala, capital of Russia’s Muslim-majority republic of Dagestan, where several dozen people stormed the runway and terminal after a plane from Israel was announced to be landing.
The images circulating on social media are dramatic and show what appears to be a real manhunt with eerie echoes of a pogrom. In the videos, someone can be heard shouting “Allah u Akbar” among the people entering the airport, while other images show dozens of men breaking barriers, trying to check cars leaving the airport or the doors from the airport. Interior of the terminal. The intervention of the special forces and the police calmed the situation, while the authorities launched a call to stop the “illegal acts”.
The airport will remain closed until November 6th. The head of the Russian Republic of Dagestan condemned the angry crowd and promised them punishment. “All Dagestanis sympathize with the suffering of the victims of the acts of unjust people and politicians and pray for peace in Palestine.
But what happened at our airport is outrageous and should be subjected to proper assessment by law enforcement authorities,” said Sergei Melikov, governor of the republic, adding: “This is being done.”
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