The Stavropol Regional Court handed down prison sentences ranging from 14 to 15 years to seven residents of Daghestan accused in the antisemitic airport riot of October 2024.
On Wednesday, the seven residents — Mikail Razakov, Jamal Ibavov, Bashir Magomedov, Ilyas Nasuev, Kamil Ibragimkhalilov, Ruslan Murtazaliev, and Arslan Magomedov — were found guilty of guilty of organising mass riots, property damage, violating transport security organisations, and attempting to murder a law enforcement official.
According to the regional prosecutor’s office, each defendant was sentenced to between 14 and 15 years of imprisonment: the first three years to be served in prison, the remainder in a strict-regime penal colony, followed by two years of restricted freedom. These are the harshest sentences handed down so far in the case.
The defence team has stated its intention to appeal the verdict. A lawyer representing one of the defendants, speaking anonymously to the independent Russian media outlet Caucasian Knot, said he had not yet received the full text of the court’s decision. He confirmed plans to file an appeal and, if necessary, a further appeal. According to the lawyer, all motions for situational and video forensic examinations were denied, and not all prosecution witnesses were questioned.
He added that all defendants were being treated the same, regardless of their individual level of involvement, and argued that merely being present near a checkpoint did not constitute a violation of transport security.
From late August 2024 to 27 June 2025, 122 people were already convicted in connection with the same case, receiving sentences ranging from four and a half to 10.5 years. This brings the total number of convicted individuals to 129. Shamil Khadulaev, head of Daghestan’s Public Monitoring Commission, previously noted that 8–10 year prison terms had become ‘like a template’.
The unrest at Makhachkala airport began on 29 October 2023, when a flight from Israel landed at Uytash airport in Makhachkala. A crowd carrying anti-Israeli signs and chanting slogans broke through security and rioted, resulting in more than 20 people injured, including around 30 law enforcement officers. Property damage was estimated at over ₽24 million ($307 million).
According to the official version, the accused took part in the mass riots motivated by hatred towards Israeli citizens, refused to comply with police orders, caused property damage, and attempted to kill law enforcement officers. However, the court did not specify which actions were attributed to each of the defendants.
Several defendants said they were present at the airport out of curiosity and did not take part in any violence. In January, police failed to identify two alleged participants — Magomedgadzhi Chirgilaev and Yasin Gadzhiev — who claimed they had been beaten to extract confessions. Nonetheless, in February, both men were sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
The trials in the airport case have been held in courts in the Stavropol and Krasnodar regions, rather than in Daghestan, reportedly in an effort to ensure judicial impartiality.
The General Prosecutor’s Office has stated that the investigation involves 142 people, of whom 135 have been arrested and seven are wanted. Among those wanted are three alleged organisers — Ilya Ponomaryov, Abakarov, and Israil Sasitlinsky. The case against them has been submitted to the Supreme Court of Daghestan.
Tata Shoshiashvili
