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Russia’s southern region of Dagestan held the first of three days of mourning following a rampage by Islamist militants who authorities say killed 20 people, most of them police, and attacked houses of worship in apparently coordinated assaults in two cities.
Violence in Dagestan’s regional capital of Makhachkala and nearby Derbent was the latest that officials blamed on Islamist extremists in the predominantly Muslim region in the North Caucasus, as well as the deadliest in Russia since March, when gunmen opened fire at a concert in suburban Moscow, killing 145 people.
The affiliate of the Islamic State group in Afghanistan that claimed responsibility for March’s raid quickly praised the attack in Dagestan, saying it was conducted by “brothers in the Caucasus who showed that they are still strong.”
The Kele-Numaz synagogue in Derbent also was set ablaze.
Dagestan
Dagestan is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea.
It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Federal District.
The republic is the southernmost tip of Russia, sharing land borders with the countries of Azerbaijan and Georgia to the south and southwest
Makhachkala is the republic's capital and largest city
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