Russian court sentences former lawmaker to 19 years in prison over antisemitic pogrom at airport

The riots at Makhachkala’s airport broke out on the evening of October 29, 2023, when hundreds of Dagestani residents surrounded a plane that had arrived from Tel Aviv in search of “refugees from Israel.” Russian investigators believe the pogrom was incited by false information published on the Telegram channel Utro Dagestan. During the unrest, 23 police officers were injured and dozens of participants were detained. Passengers on the Tel Aviv flight were evacuated from the airport by military helicopters.

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