MOSCOW: The Daesh group on Monday claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on churchgoers in Russia’s predominantly Muslim Dagestan region.
At least five people were killed and four wounded when a gunman opened fire with a hunting rifle on people leaving a Sunday service at a Russian Orthodox church in the Dagestan city of Kizlyar.
Authorities say the gunman was a local resident, and his wife has been detained for questioning. But police have not commented on the possible motive for the attack.
Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region situated between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea. Following two separatist wars in neighboring Chechnya, an Islamic insurgency spread to Dagestan.
A statement from the Daesh group, posted Monday on a Daesh-affiliated militant website, claimed responsibility for the shooting, saying a Muslim fighter attacked “a Christian temple” in Kizlyar. The authenticity of the statement could not be confirmed, but the website is regularly used by Daesh for posting militant statements.
The attack happened less than two weeks after several top officials in Dagestan were arrested on embezzlement charges, part of the Kremlin’s efforts to strengthen control over the volatile region. The officials, including the head of Dagestan’s government, were arrested at their homes before dawn in a swift, military-style operation in Dagestan and flown to Moscow. Observers saw the latest arrests as part of Kremlin efforts to rein in the local elites and establish a degree of control over the economically struggling region.
Daesh owns up to church shooting in Russia
Daesh owns up to church shooting in Russia
Spain to ban social media for children under 16, prime minister tells WGS
- Pedro Sanchez: Our children are exposed to a space they were never meant to navigate alone
- Sanchez: A space of addiction, abuse, pornography, manipulation, violence. We will no longer accept that, and we will protect them from the digital Wild West
DUBAI: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Tuesday that his country will seek to ban children aged under 16 from using social media platforms.
Speaking at the World Government Summit in Dubai, Sanchez outlined a six-point plan he said would help restore the “promised land” it once was.
“Our children are exposed to a space they were never meant to navigate alone,” he said.
“A space of addiction, abuse, pornography, manipulation, violence. We will no longer accept that, and we will protect them from the digital Wild West.”
The announcement follows a similar ban by Australia last year. French lawmakers also passed a bill last week that would ban those aged under 15 from accessing social platforms. The UK has also announced it is considering new controls.
To enforce the ban, the Spanish government will reportedly seek to order platforms to put in place stringent age verification methods. It also plans to introduce a new bill next week to hold social media executives accountable for illegal and hateful content.
Sanchez added that Spain had joined five other European countries that he labelled the “Coalition of the Digitally Willing” to coordinate and enforce cross-border regulation.
