All flights to and from the Russian region’s Makhachkala airport were suspended after a group of protesters stormed the facility.
Amid the war in Gaza, hundreds of people stormed the main airport in Russia’s Dagestan region, ostensibly to protest the arrival of flights from Israel.
The crowd on Sunday broke through security and some entered the Makhachkala airport runway, but were cleared by security forces.
“More than 150 active participants in the riots have been identified and 60 of them have been arrested,” Russia’s Interior Ministry said in a statement. Nine police officers were injured in clashes with the crowd, two of whom are being treated in hospital.
According to local news, the plane in question belonged to Russian airline Red Wings.
Footage on social media showed terrified passengers rushing to re-enter the plane amid chaos on the runway at Makhachkala airport.
Video also showed a crowd of protesters breaking through glass doors and running through the airport shouting anti-Semitic slogans. At the landing site, some people waved Palestinian flags and checked the passports of arriving passengers.
Several local Telegram channels also aired photos and videos of dozens of people who appeared to be waiting outside the airport to park their cars. Another group was also seen trying to overturn a police car. The video showed one demonstrator holding a placard that read: “Child killers have no place in Dagestan.”
The incident comes as Israel continues to expand its ground operations in the Gaza Strip despite continued heavy airstrikes. Gaza authorities say more than 8,000 Palestinians, including 3,324 children, have been killed since the war began on October 7, when Hamas, the group that runs the besieged enclave, launched surprise attacks inside Israel. Announced. At least 1,400 Israelis and foreigners were killed in Hamas attacks, Israeli officials said.
In a statement released on Sunday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that Israel “will continue to ensure that Russian law enforcement authorities protect the safety of all Israeli citizens and Jews wherever they are, and that they are committed to ensuring that Russian law enforcement authorities protect the safety of all Israeli citizens and Jews everywhere, and that they We look forward to acting decisively against the incitement.” It was directed against Jews and Israelis. ”
Earlier on Sunday, RIA Novosti news agency reported that a Jewish center in the nearby city of Nalchik in Kabardino-Balkaria was set on fire.
Several Israeli media outlets, citing Israeli security officials, reported that Israeli passengers were isolated and guarded at Makhachkala airport after the incident in Dagestan. The plan was to fly them directly to Moscow, according to reports.
appeal to calmness
Russia’s civil aviation agency Rosaviatsia reported late Sunday that the airfield had been cleared of unauthorized people, but the airport would be provisionally closed to aircraft arrivals until November 6.
The Muslim-majority regional government of Dagestan expressed support for Gaza, but urged its people to remain calm and not take part in such protests.
The government warned protesters on Telegram “not to continue their illegal activities and not to disrupt the work of airport staff.”
The statement continued: “It is not easy for each of us to stand and watch the inhuman slaughter of civilians, namely Palestinians. I urge you not to succumb to provocations and not to cause panic in society.”
Dagestan’s Supreme Mufti, Sheikh Ahmad Affandi, also called on residents to stop the violence at the airport.
“You are wrong. This problem cannot be solved this way. We are very keenly aware of your indignation and understand…we will solve this problem another way. Larry But not properly. Give you maximum patience and calm, ”he said in a video published on Telegram.
White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrian Watson condemned the incident, saying, “As we witness a global rise in anti-Semitism, the United States stands unequivocally with the entire Jewish community.” .
