Imam Killed in Russia After Speaking Out Against Islamic Militants

Via mytelus.com -

MAKHACHKALA, Russia - Gunmen killed a Russian imam on his way to morning prayers in a restive southern region Saturday, a day after he spoke out against Islamic extremists, police said.

Nurmagomed Gadzhimagomedov was shot by attackers in a car while walking from his home to his mosque in the Dagestani settlement of Gudben, they said.

Dagestan, a mostly Muslim region east of Chechnya that is home to many ethnic groups, has been plagued by shootings, bombings and other violence, including regular attacks on top officials and police. Some of the violence has been linked to Islamic extremists and some was rooted in disputes between local criminal clans.

Gadzhimagomedov was a vocal critic of Islamic extremism who had spoken out against militants during a service at the mosque Friday, police said. They said the killing was "clearly a revenge attack" by Islamic militants.

In July, a deputy chief mufti at the central mosque in the provincial capital, Makhachkala, was killed, along with his driver, by a roadside bomb blast.