A Chabad rabbi in Derbent, a city in the predominantly Muslim Republic
of Dagestan the borders Chechnya has been shot outside home in what appears to be a religiously-motivated antisemitic attack.
Chabad Rabbi Shot In Possible Antisemitic Attack
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
A Chabad rabbi in Derbent, a city in the predominantly Muslim Republic of Dagestan the borders Chechnya has been shot outside home, the JTA reported.
40-year-old Rabbi Artur (Ovadia) Isakov, 40 was shot last night just after he got out of his car.
One bullet reportedly entered his right lung and his liver.
Isakov was able to call out for help. He was taken to an area hospital at about 1 a.m., a Russian news agency reported, where he is reportedly on an artificial respirator in intensive care.
Rabbi Berel Lazar, Chabad’s Chief Rabbi of Russia, has reportedly chartered a plane that will take Isakov to Israel for medical care as soon as Isakov’s condition allows it.
While investigating all possibilities, local police reportedly said they are considering “religious motivations” for the crime.
In a prepared statement, Ramazan Abdulatipov, the acting president of Dagestan, blamed “extremists and terrorists [who] do not want a happy, normal life for us all” for the attack. “Only ignorant people, enemies of Dagestan, are able to do this. Dagestan is outraged.”