Dagestan airport mob hunts for passengers on flight from Tel Aviv

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Late on Sunday, a group of people carrying flags of Palestine forcefully entered the primary airport in the Russian republic of Dagestan situated in the south. It is reported that they were looking for Israeli passengers from a flight that had arrived from Tel Aviv earlier in the day.

Furious groups from the Caucasus area forcefully entered the airport and made their way through the structure. They then encircled the airplane and a few even tried to get on board by climbing onto its wings and roof.

Numerous videos circulated on social media depicting a large group of men on the runway. Some of them were harassing an airport employee who stated that there were no more passengers left in the plane. Tel Aviv frequently offers flights to Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan, which are commonly used by travelers who are passing through to reach other regions in Russia.

It seems that the violence began because people spread rumours that refugees from Israel were being moved to a place where most people are Muslim. On Saturday night, a group of people went to a hotel in Dagestan and looked for Israelis. This was reported in local media. Another report said that a Jewish building being built in Nalchik, which is the capital of a nearby place called Kabardino-Balkaria, was set on fire.

Preliminary to the airport being attacked in Makhachkala, many videos were seen on the Telegram messaging app posted by local Dagestan channels. These videos displayed many men monitoring the airport exit, assessing the passports of departing passengers in their vehicles. One of the clips showed a man saying, "We are anticipating the plane's arrival."

There have been a number of rallies occurring in multiple cities throughout the Caucasus lately, displaying support for Palestine. Despite Russia's regulations against public protests, people have congregated to express their frustration regarding Israel's bombing of Gaza. This has caused the obliteration of over 8,000 Palestinians, based on Gaza's health ministry run by Hamas. The occurrence follows the assault by Hamas militants on October 7th, which resulted in the death of no less than 1,400 Israelis.

Vladimir Putin has indicated that he supports Palestine and the Kremlin recently hosted a meeting with several members of Hamas leadership to discuss various topics, including the release of Russian hostages held by the group in Gaza.

The aviation agency, Rosaviatsia, in Russia has revealed that Makhchkala's airport had to be shut down on Sunday, thus diverting flights that were scheduled to arrive to other airports. Not long after, riot police were watched as they entered the premises of the airport, and the local government made a statement asserting that they had the situation under control. A "mass disturbance" prompted the Russian investigative committee in Dagestan to initiate a criminal investigation.

The statement from the office of Israel’s prime minister expressed deep concern about any actions that could harm Israeli citizens or Jews around the world. The government of Israel is carefully monitoring the situation in Dagestan and taking it very seriously.

The Israeli government is asking the Russian law enforcement officials to protect the safety of Israeli citizens and Jews, while taking stern measures against rioters and extreme calls for violence against Jews and Israelis. The government has mentioned that its ambassador to Russia is collaborating closely with the Russian authorities to ensure the wellbeing of all concerned individuals.

On Sunday, a representative from the main rabbinate in Dagestan stated that there are roughly 300-400 families in Derbent who identify as Jewish, and a similar number located throughout the rest of the region. The representative also acknowledged the potential for members of the Jewish community to leave the area.

Rabbi Ovadya Isakov stated in an interview with Podyom, a small Russian online media outlet, that the condition in Dagestan is tremendously challenging and that the citizens are extremely anxious. He added that Russia is not an absolute solution, considering that there have been riots in Russia. Hence, it is uncertain where the people can escape the situation.

There are some stories spreading around that seem to have originated from the Morning Dagestan channel on Telegram. This channel has a very large following of over 50,000 readers.

The station has been linked to Ilya Ponomarev, a former Russian politician who now resides in Kyiv and is a vocal critic of the Kremlin. He has claimed to lead a group of Russians fighting against Moscow in Ukraine, but some members of this group hold extreme far-right beliefs. Ponomarev recently announced that he hasn't had control of the channel for over a year.