Bombing of Sheikh of Chirkei's tomb becomes 14th IS' attack in Dagestan

Since 2015, in Dagestan, there were at least 14 attacks committed by militants of the terrorist organization "Islamic State" (IS), banned in Russia by the court.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that at night on May 9, in the Dagestani village of Chirkei, a room near the grave of Sheikh Said of Chirkei was blown up. The suspects have already been detained, a source reports. The responsibility for the attack was assumed by the IS.

Earlier, on February 18, at the celebration of Maslenitsa, 22-year-old Khalil Khalilov shot and killed people from a rifle near the Orthodox Church in Kizlyar. Five women were killed, and four other persons were wounded.

Earlier, it has been reported about 12 IS attacks in Dagestan and 9 cases when the IS claimed responsibility for the attacks in the republic.

In 2018, both attacks were committed on religious sites, and that can prove the desire of the IS to sow inter-confessional discord in the region. Russians and Orthodox believers are not one of the main ethnic groups in Dagestan. Besides, Sheikh of Chirkei, as well as other influential theologians, was used during the active struggle of Salafis against Sufis to show what "correct Islam" was.

The attack in Kizlyar, which is considered the place of compact residence of Russians in Dagestan, looks like an attempt to show that it is dangerous for Russians to live in the republic. Meanwhile, the killing of Sheikh of Chirkei is most likely connected with the confrontation between Sufis and Salafis, and the desire to mock the memory of the murdered teacher looks like the desire to "drive a wedge" between followers of the different concepts of Islam in the republic.