More than 15 police officers and several civilians killed by gunmen in the southern Russian region of Dagestan

MOSCOW (AP) — More than 15 police officers and several civilians, including an Orthodox priest, were killed by armed militants in the southern Russian republic of Dagestan on Sunday, Governor Sergei Melikov said in a video message early Monday.

According to authorities, the gunmen opened fire on two Orthodox churches, a synagogue and a police station in two cities.

Russia’s National Anti-Terrorism Committee described the attacks in the predominantly Muslim region, which has seen armed uprisings in the past, as terrorist acts.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were declared days of mourning in the region.

The Dagestan Interior Ministry said a group of armed men had opened fire on a synagogue and a church in the Caspian Sea city of Derbent. Both the church and the synagogue caught fire, according to state media. Almost simultaneously, reports appeared of an attack on a church and a traffic police post in the Dagestan capital Makhachkala.

Authorities announced an anti-terror operation in the region. The anti-terror committee said five armed men had been “eliminated.” The governor said six “bandits” had been “liquidated.” The conflicting figures could not immediately be reconciled and it was not clear how many militants were involved in the attacks.

There were no immediate announcements about the attacks. The authorities launched an investigation into the alleged terrorist attack.

Russian state news agency Tass cited law enforcement sources as saying that a Dagestani official had been arrested over his sons’ involvement in the attacks.

Melikov said in the video message that the situation in the region was under the control of law enforcement and local authorities and vowed that the investigation into the attacks would continue until “all sleeping cells” of the militants were uncovered.

Without providing any evidence, he claimed that the attacks could have been prepared from abroad and referred to the Kremlin’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, apparently in an attempt to link the attacks to it.

In March, gunmen opened fire on a crowd at a concert hall in a Moscow suburb, killing 145 people. A member of the terrorist group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, but Russian authorities also tried to link Ukraine to the attack without providing any evidence. Kiev vehemently denies any involvement.

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