23:26, 30 December 2015

IS claims responsibility for Derbent shelling

An observation platform near Naryn-Kala Fortress. Derbent. Photo by Patimat Makhmudova for the "Caucasin Knot"

The targets of the shelling in Derbent were Russian servicemen, says the statement of the "Islamic State" IS) recognized as a terrorist organization.

The armed attack on people in the vicinity of Naryn-Kala Fortress, which was first reported by the "Caucasian Knot", occurred last night. Twelve persons were taken to the Derbent hospital with gunshot wounds; one of them later died. According to investigators, there were at least three shooters at the tourists.

The head of Dagestan Ramazan Abdulatipov said that a group of people at the entrance to the fortress was shelled by militants who are still at large. According to a law enforcement source, militants from a local terrorist grouping, who had sworn to the IS, are suspected of committing the shelling.

Today, a number of websites supporting the armed underground of Northern Caucasus, as well as the pages of IS' supporters on the Twitter posted a statement of the "Islamic State" (IS) claimed responsibility for the shelling in Derbent.

The statement of the IS was also reposted by the resource named "SITE Intelligence Group", a non-profit organization registered in the United States and monitoring the activities of terrorist groupings on the Internet.

According to the statement, the targets of the shelling in Derbent were Russian servicemen. It is also noted that in the course of the shelling one officer was killed, and others were wounded. It is also stated that the gunmen returned to their base without losses.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.