What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
One protester could be seen in the videos holding a sign that read: “Child killers have no place in Dagestan.”
NEW DELHI: A mob, reportedly looking for Israelis and Jews, overran an airport in the Russian Caucasus republic of Dagestan on Sunday, following rumours that a flight from Israel was arriving. The incident occurred in Makhachkala in the Republic of Dagestan, prompting the closure of the airport and the diversion of all flights scheduled to land in Makhachkala, as stated by Russian aviation authority Rosaviatsia.
Videos posted on social media and reported by Russia Today captured the shocking scenes at the airport, where dozens of protesters, many of whom chanted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest), breached doors and barriers, with some people running onto the runway. The website Flightradar indicated that a Red Wings flight from Tel Aviv had landed at Makhachkala, further fuelling the tensions.
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In response to the disturbing incident, a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office was issued, saying, “Israel expects the Russian authorities to protect all Israeli citizens and all Jews, and to act decisively against the rioters and against incitement to violence against Jews and Israelis.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, labelling the incident on the microblogging site X as “appalling”, said, “This is not an isolated incident in Makhachkala, but rather part of Russia’s widespread culture of hatred toward other nations, which is propagated by state television, pundits, and authorities.”
Appalling videos from Makhachkala, Russia, where an angry mob broke into the airport searching for Israeli citizens on the flight from Tel-Aviv.
This is not an isolated incident in Makhachkala, but rather part of Russia’s widespread culture of hatred toward other nations, which…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) October 29, 2023
One protester could be seen in the videos holding a sign that read: “Child killers have no place in Dagestan.”
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Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reported that a few Israelis and Jews were caught in the midst of the protests at the airport. Videos revealed the chaos, with protesters breaking into the terminal and confronting airport staff. Russia’s aviation agency, Rosaviatsiya, announced that the airport would remain closed until November 6.
Russian interior ministry on Monday said that they have arrested 60 people so far in the incident. “More than 150 active participants in the unrest have been identified, 60 of them have been arrested,” said the ministry in a statement.
Dagestan and Chechnya, both primarily Muslim regions in Russia, have experienced years of violent tensions with the central Russian authorities.
In a related development, earlier on Sunday, the RIA Novosti news agency reported that a Jewish centre in another North Caucasus republic, Kabardino-Balkaria, was set on fire in the city of Nalchik.
