In the midst of the war between Hamas and Israel, a group of Jews in Russia experienced horror. Upon learning that a plane from Tel Aviv was going to land in Dagestan, antisemitic mobs stormed the airport. Moments later, another group of people met at a hotel in the area and entered to check that there were no Jews staying. As reported by the ChP Dagestan Telegram channel, it all started after "a person resembling an Israeli citizen" was seen walking near the hotel.
The Republic of Dagestan, located on the coast of the Caspian Sea and neighboring Azerbaijan and Georgia, is an autonomous republic within Russia. According to a survey conducted in 2012, it is estimated that 83% of its population is Muslim.
BREAKING:
A lynch mob has stormed the airport in Dagestan, Russia to look for Jewish passengers after finding out that a plane from Tel Aviv is about to land.
They have also stopped police cars in front of the airport and are searching them for Jews.
What’s Putin doing?
🇷🇺🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/LgaiXaiDqJ
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 29, 2023
"In Muslim areas of Russia’s north Caucasus, mobs raid hotels looking for Jews after rumors spread that some Israelis had moved there to flee the war," confirmed Yaroslav Trofimov, chief foreign affairs correspondent from The Wall Street Journal.
"Mobs break into the Makhachkala airport, in Russia’s north Caucasus, looking to lynch Jews after rumors spread about the arrival of Jewish refugees from Israel," he added.
Trofimov also posted a photo of signs in the area reading: “Entry to citizens of Israel (Jews) is strictly prohibited.”
A plane from Israel lands in Dagestan:
The voice of the flight-attendant: Return into the plane immediately! https://t.co/ADzRxxwqMu pic.twitter.com/6g3IEAAiJf
— Russian Market (@runews) October 29, 2023
Footage circulating on social media showed people waving Palestinian flags and chanting "Allahu akbar" as they stopped cars to check passengers' documents to make sure they were not Israelis or Jews.
At the airport, some passengers had begun to get off the plane when the authorities told them to return inside, already informed of the situation.
A Jewish man checked into the Flamingo Hotel in Khasavyurt, Dagestan in Russia today.
Quickly a crowd gathered in front of the hotel and started shouting:
"Show your face, or we will come into the hotel and pull you out of there!”
This is how a lynch mob looks like pic.twitter.com/zfWcgwkdD9
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 29, 2023
Israel trusts in Russia's protection of its citizens
Benjamin Netanyahu's government has communicated that it hopes Russian authorities can protect its citizens from protesters.
"Israel says it expects Russian authorities to maintain safety of Israeli nationals against rioters, amid attempts by crowds at Makhachkala airport in Dagestan to force their way into plane that has landed from Tel Aviv," reported The Spectator Index on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Entry to citizens of Israel (Jews) strictly forbidden” — a sign at the entrance to a hotel in Khasavyurt, Dagestan. https://t.co/h0OHm4apS4 pic.twitter.com/v3cxIe4pvm
— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) October 29, 2023
