In Dagestan, officials to intervene in Tarki conflict because of villagers' protest sentiment

In the village of Tarki, a conflict took place between members of the same ethnic community, and there is no interethnic undertone in those events, experts say. The protest sentiments are strong in the villages of Tarki, Kyakhulai, and Alburikent, the chair of the board of the Kumyk National Council states.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 3, a local resident was killed in Makhachkala, who tried to fight against drug dealers. According to users of social networks, a former law enforcer was involved in the illicit trafficking of prohibited substances. On January 6, during a gathering in the village of Tarki, at which the murder of activist Vali Abduragimov was discussed, a mass fight took place, in which Kerim Khairullaev, a native of Makhachkala, was killed. On January 8, local alims decided to evict the family of a man suspected of the murder.

There was no interethnic conflict in the Tarki incident, says Rasul Gadjiev, the chief of the Department for Religious Affairs of the Dagestani Ministry of Nationalities. "Kumyks live in those three villages, and the conflict occurred among them," Rasul Gadjiev explained.

The official emphasizes that it is not worth comparing the incident with the conflict, which took place in Tarki in February 2020. Then residents of the villages of Tarki, Kyakhulai, and Alburikent banned members of other ethnic communities of Dagestan from holding events on Mount Tarki-Tau.