Sunday's gunfire attacks targeted a police post, a synagogue, and Orthodox churches in Makhachkala, the regional capital, and Derbent, resulting in the deaths of at least 17 police officers and an Orthodox priest, according to authorities.
Pro-Kremlin media seemed to downplay a claim from Al Azaim Media, a Russian-language channel linked to the Islamic State in Khorasan Province. This channel posted a statement late Sunday saying the attack was in response to calls for action on behalf of the Islamic State organization, or ISIS.
Dagestan governor Sergei Melikov reported that six suspects were killed during the operation.
Despite Dagestan's long history of Islamist violence, some Russian officials attributed the terrorist attack in the predominantly Muslim region to Ukraine and the United States.
