Police are searching for alleged militants and their accomplices in the Daghestani city Khasavyurt and three villages in the north of the republic. A Counter-Terrorism Operation (CTO) has been declared. The CTO regime was introduced in the morning of 19 March in Khasavyurt, Kizilyurt, and Kazbekovsky districts.

On 11 March, there was an armed attack on police near the village of Endirey, in Khasavyurt District. One police officer was injured during the shootout. According to officials, there were three attackers, all of whom managed to escape.

A source in the Daghestani office of the National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) told OC Media that as part of the CTO regime, residents in these settlements have had their movement restricted.

‘Local residents in the zone of the special regime cannot move freely through the villages or travel outside of their borders. Law enforcement officers are checking the documents of locals as well as a number of households in these villages. There is also a restriction on cellular communication. It’s not always possible to call [within the area of the operation]’, the source said.

The source denied a link between the introduction of the CTO and the recent attack on police:

‘The task of the special services now is to identify the alleged members of illegal armed groups and their accomplices. If anyone is arrested, then we will find out if they were involved in the incident with the attack’, the source explained.

On 5 March special services conducted a special operation in Derbent. According to a statement from the NAC, the special operation thwarted the activities of an underground group affiliated with the Islamic State.

‘The group consisted of four residents of Daghestan. They conceived of the intention to commit crimes against representatives of government bodies and law enforcement officials’, the statement reads.

One alleged militant was killed and three more were arrested during the special operation.