Shootout in Makhachkala becomes seventh armed incident in Dagestan within three years
Since the beginning of 2025, there have been three shootouts with law enforcers in Dagestan, while two similar incidents have been recorded during all of 2024, with one more in May 2023 and one more in May 2022.
According to the calculations run by the “Caucasian Knot”, based on its own materials and the information from open sources, the shootout in Makhachkala became the seventh similar incident in Dagestan within three years.
Three incidents – on May 5 and March 5 in Makhachkala, April 23 in Derbent – occurred in 2025, two more took place in 2024, and one occurred in 2023 and one – 2022.
On June 23, 2024, on the Christian holiday of Holy Trinity Day, militants attacked synagogues and Orthodox churches in Derbent and Makhachkala. As a result, at least 22 people were killed, and 46 others were injured. Six suspected militants were killed.
The previous incident occurred on March 31, 2024, in Makhachkala and Kaspiysk. During the special counter-terrorism operation, several people were blocked in apartments in residential buildings. Residents of adjacent houses were evacuated. Law enforcers detained three persons who, according to their operative information, were planning terrorist attacks. According to the statement released by the law enforcement bodies, automatic firearms, ammunition, and an improvised explosive device (IED) were seized from the detainees.
In 2023, a shootout occurred on May 12 near the village of Tsyysha in the Kulinsky District. That day, an 18-year-old native of the village of Novolakskoye and a 20-year-old native of Kaspiysk rendered armed resistance when law enforcers tried to detain them. The suspects were killed in a shootout. Two grenades, a pistol with three rounds of ammunition, and two knives were found with the killed suspects. According to the law enforcement bodies’ version, the young people planned to use the above-mentioned weapons to attack law enforcers.
In 2022, an armed incident occurred in the Leninsky District of Makhachkala on May 18. The counter-terrorism operation (CTO) legal regime was announced there. The National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) reported about two killed suspects. According to the law enforcers’ operative information, the suspects preparing a terrorist attack at an energy facility.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 6, 2025 at 11:02 аm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.