After violent riots at an airport in the Russian Republic of Dagestan late Sunday night, a group of Jewish passengers found themselves at risk amid the chaos. With swift response from authorities, they were evacuated via helicopter to an undisclosed location, ensuring their safety.
The Foreign Ministry on Monday night issued a travel warning for the northern Caucasus region, raising it to Level 4, in light of the attack and high tensions from the war.
The Jerusalem Post obtained exclusive video footage showing the passengers, seemingly unharmed, having breakfast in what appears to be a hotel dining room in Dagestan on Monday morning.
They had been hidden within the airport complex until police could establish control over the airport. The Post understands that the rescue mission included a helicopter to evacuate them.
Antisemitic turmoil in Dagestan's airport
The turmoil began when anti-Israel protesters, numbering in the hundreds, launched an attack on the airport ahead of the arrival of a “Red Wings” flight from Tel Aviv. Local media reports describe a frenzied scene as residents of Makhachkala, the capital of the Russian Republic of Dagestan, attempted to target Jewish and Israeli passengers aboard the arriving flight.
As of Monday, the Russian RIA news agency reported that 60 people were detained, with 150 of the most active protesters identified. The skirmish resulted in injuries to nine police officers, two of whom were hospitalized.
Eyewitness videos from the airport depict demonstrators, primarily young men, waving Palestinian flags, destroying glass barriers, and echoing the chant “Allahu Akbar.” Some were seen attempting to overturn a patrol vehicle.Local authorities confirmed that 20 people were wounded before the situation could be contained.
The popular messaging platform Telegram will block channels that called for antisemitic violence in Russia’s Dagestan region, Telegram founder Pavel Durov said on Monday.
“Channels calling for violence will be blocked for violating the rules of Telegram, Google, Apple, and the entire civilized world,” Durov wrote on his own Telegram channel.
Durov posted a screenshot from “Utro Dagestan” (Morning Dagestan), a channel that contained threats to the tiny community of Jews living in Dagestan.
This incident is the latest in a series of anti-Israel events in the North Caucasus region of Russia. These reactions are believed to be in response to Israel’s ongoing conflict with Hamas terrorists in Gaza. Dagestan’s local government said it is reinforcing security measures throughout the republic, which houses an estimated three million residents.
Head of Dagestan province: There is no honor in attacking strangers
Sergey Melikov, head of the Republic of Dagestan, delivered a stern statement condemning the airport attackers:“There is no honor in attacking strangers or in threatening women and children.”
Melikov emphasized the disgrace brought upon those who previously defended Dagestan in historical conflicts.Melikov further alleged that external forces, specifically from Ukraine, were behind the orchestration of the airport unrest. He singled out the “Morning Dagestan” channel, accusing it of promoting violence and being operated from Ukrainian territory. This is despite the channel’s explicit denial of any ties to Ukraine.
A senior Ukrainian official said on Monday that Kyiv had nothing to do with anti-Israel unrest in Russia’s predominantly Muslim Dagestan region, rejecting an accusation by Russia to that effect as groundless.
“Of course, Ukraine has nothing to do with the latest large-scale surge of xenophobic sentiments on the territory of the Russian Federation,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak told Reuters in a written statement.
The president of Russia’s Federation of Jewish Communities on Monday called on the authorities to find and harshly punish the participants and organizers of an antisemitic riot in Dagestan on Sunday.
Rabbi Alexander Boroda said a riot that greeted the arrival of the plane “undermined the basic foundations of our multicultural and multinational state.”
Boroda said Dagestani authorities had not been prepared for the riot, in which 60 people were arrested and at least 20 injured.
Russian Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar reflected on the turbulent times, expressing concern over rising global tensions. He emphasized the importance of mutual respect and unity among the diverse populace of Russia. Other spiritual leaders, including Russian Mufti Ahmad Afandi Abdulaev, have also denounced the violent protest methods adopted at the airport.
Jerusalem Post Staff and Reuters contributed to this report.