A minimum of 15 folks, together with policemen and a priest, have been killed and a number of other others injured after unidentified gunmen opened fireplace at synagogues, church buildings, and a police publish in Russia’s North Caucasus area of Dagestan on Sunday, the area’s governor mentioned.

The simultaneous assaults occurred in Dagestan’s largest metropolis of Makhachkala and within the coastal metropolis of Derbent with Governor Sergei Melikov calling it a “terrorist assault”.

Officers mentioned that the police personnel had killed 4 gunmen in Makhachkala and two in Derbent.

Melikov mentioned that among the many lifeless, along with the law enforcement officials, have been a number of civilians, together with an Orthodox priest who had labored in Derbent for greater than 40 years.

“This night in Derbent and Makhachkala unknown (attackers) made makes an attempt to destabilise the state of affairs in society,” Melikov wrote on Telegram.

“We all know who’s behind these terrorist assaults and what goal they’re pursuing,” he added later, with out specifying however referring to the Russia-Ukraine battle.

“We should perceive that battle involves our houses too. We felt it, however as we speak we face it,” he mentioned.

Melikov mentioned the “lively part” of operations in Derbent and Makhachkala had ended and that “six bandits have been liquidated”.

The authorities will attempt to discover “all of the members of those sleeper cells who ready (the assaults) and who have been ready, together with overseas”, he added.

He additionally mentioned that June 24-26 have been declared days of mourning in Dagestan, with flags lowered to half-staff and all leisure occasions cancelled.

Russia’s Investigative Committee mentioned it had opened legal probes over “acts of terror” in Dagestan. There, nonetheless, was no speedy declare of accountability for the assaults.

Russia’s state media cited legislation enforcement as saying that among the many attackers had been two sons of the top of central Dagestan’s Sergokala district, who had been detained.

In Derbent, authorities have been quoted as saying that each the synagogue and church have been set on fireplace.

The incident comes three months after 145 folks have been killed in an assault claimed by the Islamic State on a live performance corridor close to Moscow, Russia’s worst terrorist assault in years.