Law enforcers brought into Dagestan village due to threat of mass brawl

A threat of a mass conflict has appeared in the village of Agvali in the Tsumada District of Dagestan after a brawl of the Imam of the local mosque with a villager. Armed law enforcers have arrived in the village; policemen took control over the entrances to Agvali.

The tense situation in Agvali was caused by a conflict of the Imam with a local resident.

The clergyman committed assault on a local resident, the "Chernovik" (Draft) weekly reported on August 16. As a result, to prevent the conflict escalation, OMON (riot police) fighters were brought to Agvali, along with policemen, says the edition.

According to preliminary data, the Imam had persuaded the local resident that he (the Imam) was carrying out the Imam's functions of the local mosque. The village mosque is temporarily closed; and local believers intend to elect a new Imam, the "Chernovik" has reported. Policemen are on duty at entrances to the village; law enforcers examine those arriving from other regions to prevent the situation from getting worse, the "Chernovik" writes.

A post with a video clip about the conflict in Agvali was also placed on August 17 in the Instagram public dnevnik.gorca. The video footage shows a crowd of people at night; reflections from flashing lights of special vehicles can be seen. Law enforcers with submachine guns and policemen are also seen in the crowd.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 17, 2021 at 09:06 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.