The court sentenced the organizers of the riots in Makhachkala to lengthy prison terms in absentia.
Ilya Ponomarev*, Israil Akhmednabiyev (Abu Umar Sasitlinsky), and Abakar Abakarov, who are on the international wanted list and whose death confirmation request has been sent to Turkish authorities, have been sentenced in absentia to terms ranging from 15 to 19 years. The investigation and the court deemed them to be the organizers of the riots at Makhachkala airport.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", three alleged organizers of the pogrom - Ilya Ponomarev*, Abakar Abakarov, and Israil Akhmednabiyev (Abu Umar Sasitlinsky) - have been placed on the wanted list in connection with the riots at Makhachkala's Uytash Airport. According to the Investigative Committee, they published posts on Telegram that encouraged residents of Dagestan to participate in mass riots motivated by hatred toward Israel. In July 2025, the cases of all three were submitted to the Supreme Court of Dagestan for trial in absentia. Participants in the 2023 riots at Makhachkala's Uytash Airport attempted to disarm security forces and threw stones at them, according to testimony read in court in November 2025.
On October 17, 2025, it was reported that Abakar Abakarov, a native of Dagestan whom Russian investigators believe to be the organizer of the riots at Makhachkala Airport, had been killed in Turkey. On October 18, it was reported that Abakarov's body had been returned to his family. He was buried in Istanbul that same day. The Supreme Court of Dagestan has sent a request to Turkish authorities to confirm the death of Abakar Abakarov, founder of the Telegram channel "Utro Dagestana." A follow-up request was sent in March. The Supreme Court of the Republic of Dagestan has sentenced Ilya Ponomarev*, Israil Akhmednabiyev, and Abakar Abakarov, who are on the international wanted list. Depending on their role and degree of participation, they were found guilty in absentia of organizing mass riots (Part 1 of Article 212 of the Russian Criminal Code), inciting hatred or enmity (Part 2 of Article 282 of the Russian Criminal Code), and financing extremist activity (Part 1 of Article 282.3 of the Russian Criminal Code), the Dagestan Prosecutor's Office reported today. According to investigators, the accused posted materials on one of the messengers aimed at inciting hatred and enmity among residents of the republic, encouraging them to organize and participate in mass riots, and raising funds to finance extremist activities. As a result, on October 29, 2023, mass riots occurred at Uytash Airport, accompanied by violence and the destruction of property worth over 24 million rubles, violations of transport and aviation security requirements, which led to a complete shutdown of the airport, the delay and cancellation of scheduled flights, and their rerouting to other airports. In addition, as a result of the unlawful actions, 23 law enforcement officers suffered bodily injuries of varying severity. Taking into account the position of the state prosecutor, the convicted persons were sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 15 to 19 years, to be served in A maximum-security penal colony was detained, according to a statement on the department's Telegram channel. As a reminder, mass riots at Makhachkala Airport occurred on October 29, 2023, following a report of the arrival of a plane carrying passengers from Israel. More than 20 people were injured in the riots. 1,200 people were brought to administrative responsibility. More than 130 people have already been convicted of participating in the mass riots at Makhachkala airport; they have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 6.5 to 15 years. Dagestani resident Bakhtiyar Radzhabov, whom the Georgievsk City Court sentenced to seven years in prison in October in October, became at least the 136th person convicted for participating in the pogrom; investigators previously stated that the cases of 139 defendants had been transferred to the courts (excluding three who are in (wanted)."A wave of anti-Semitic actions in the North Caucasus". We have updated our apps for Android and IOS! We welcome criticism and development ideas, both in Google Play/App Store, and on KU pages in social networks. Without installing a VPN, you can read us on Telegram (with a VPN in Dagestan, Chechnya, and Ingushetia). Using a VPN, you can continue reading the Caucasian Knot on the website as usual and on social networks: Facebook, Instagram, and Instagram. rel="noopener">Odnoklassniki and X. Watch "Caucasian Knot" videos on YouTube. Send messages on WhatsApp** to +49 157 72317856, on Telegram to the same number, or write to @Caucasian_Knot. * are included in the register of foreign agents. ** The activities of Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.