Image copyright EPA Image caption Doctors examine wounded patients in a hospital in Kizlyar

Five women have been killed in a shooting at a church in Russia's volatile republic of Dagestan.

Five others, including a police officer and a national guardsman, were injured, Russian officials said. Two are said to be in a critical condition.

A man fired at people leaving an evening service in the city of Kizlyar.

The attacker was shot and killed at the scene. He was later identified as 22-year-old Khalil Khalilov, a resident of Dagestan.

The Islamic State (IS) group said it was behind the attack but did not immediately provide any evidence.

The gunman used a hunting rifle, opening fire on worshippers leaving a service during celebrations for Maslenitsa - a traditional pre-Lent festival, Russian media report.

Four women were killed at the scene, and another woman died later in a hospital.

One of them was an award-winning doctor, Lyudmila Shcherbakova, who had more than 40 years' experience working in Dagestan's hospitals, Tass news agency reports.

Russian news outlet RBK quoted an Orthodox Christian priest as saying the attack took place immediately following the afternoon service.

"We had finished the mass and were beginning to leave the church. A bearded man ran towards the church shouting 'Allahu Akbar' (God is greatest) and killed four people," the priest said.

"He was carrying a rifle and a knife," he added.

IS later said - through its information wing Amaq - that one of its "soldiers" had carried out the attack.

However, it provided no evidence to back up its claims.

The Dagestan Muftiate - the administrative body for Sunni Muslims in the region - expressed sorrow over the attack and condemned the gunman as a "Wahhabi... one of those who espouse pseudo-Islam, which has no connection to true Islam".

Wahhabism is an ultra-conservative form of Sunni Islam followed by Saudi Arabia's ruling family and religious establishment.

IS made the claim in the name of its so-called "Caucasus Province", the last official branch set up by the group in 2015.

The branch has claimed a number of deadly attacks against security personnel in Dagestan.

Dagestan, located in Russia's North Caucasus, is an ethnically diverse and largely Muslim federal republic.

The Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church called the shooting a "monstrous crime" aimed at sowing discord between Christians and Muslims in Dagestan.</s>Four people have been killed after a shooting at a church in Dagestan, Russia

The attack in Russia’s Dagestan in the Caucasus also injured four other people.

A gunman opened fire at a festival outside a church in the town of of Kizlyar.

One witness said: “There were a lot of people there, moms with little children, elderly people. I believe God saved us, not allowing the man to get inside the church.”

The gunman is believed to have also been shot dead while fleeing the scene.

The shooting was confirmed by Russian news agency Tass this afternoon, citing the town's mayor Alexander Shuvalov and the country's Interior Ministry.

This is a breaking story, more to follow…</s>Five women were killed Sunday when a gunman opened fire at a Russian Orthodox church in the restive Northern Caucasus region of Dagestan.

Russian news sources quoted a priest from the church in Kizlyar in western Dagestan as saying the attacker, described as a local man in his 20s, began firing on churchgoers as they were leaving following Sunday afternoon service.

"A bearded man ran towards the church shouting 'Allah Akbar' and killed four people," Father Pavel said, according to Russian sources quoted by The Guardian. "He was carrying a rifle and a knife."

A fifth person died of wounds at a local hospital. All five victims were women.

The gunman was later identified by Russian media sources as Khalil Khaililov, a 22-year-old resident of Kidero, a town about a hundred miles south of the scene of the attack.

Khaililov was "eliminated" by police gunfire, according to Interfax.

ISIS claimed responsibility, a Muslim-majority region that has sought independence from Moscow, according to Russia's RBK Daily.</s>The attack in Russia’s Dagestan in the Caucasus also injured four other people.

A gunman opened fire at a festival outside a church in the town of of Kizlyar.

One witness said: “There were a lot of people there, moms with little children, elderly people. I believe God saved us, not allowing the man to get inside the church.”

The gunman is believed to have also been shot dead while fleeing the scene.

All four victims were women leaving the church.</s>A gunman has opened fire with a hunting rifle on churchgoers leaving a service in Russia's Dagestan region, killing four people and wounding four others.

The shooting took place on Sunday evening in Kizlyar, a town of about 50,000 people on the border with Chechnya.

State news agency Tass cited mayor Alexander Shuvalov as saying four people were killed and four wounded.

The motive for the shooting was not immediately known.

Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea.

Following two separatist wars in neighbouring Chechnya, an Islamist insurgency spread to Dagestan.</s>FIVE people were killed and several others were injured after a gunman opened fire with a hunting rifle on people leaving a church service in Russia’s Dagestan region on Sunday, Russian media outlets reported.

The shooting took place outside a church in the town of Kizlyar, a town of about 50,000 people on the border with Chechnya. The Russian news agency TASS cited Mayor Alexander Shuvalov as the source for the number of people killed and wounded, reports Fox News.

The gunman was shot dead by police responding to the scene, a law enforcement source told the Interfax news agency. According to Interfax, the gunman has been identified as a local man in his early 20s.

“People were leaving a church after an evening service when he opened gunfire at them,” Mr Shuvalov told TASS. Two police officers and a woman were among the wounded, according to Shuvalov. One woman later died at a hospital, a law enforcement source told RIA Novosti.

An eyewitness posted a video of the shooting on Twitter, which captured the moment shots were being fired.

Russian media outlets also posted photos on social media of the alleged weapon used in the attack, in addition to a body in front of the church covered by a tarp.

Parishioners were at the church celebrating the end of the Russian festival of Maslenitsa, which marks the start of Lent for Russian Orthodox Christians, according to RT.

An eyewitness to the shooting, Oksana, told RT the gunman targeted people as they were leaving the church, but many took cover inside the building.

“There were a lot of people there, moms with little children, elderly people. I believe God saved us, not allowing the man to get inside the church,” the woman told the news outlet.

Authorities have not yet disclosed what motivated the shooting.

Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea. Following two separatist wars in neighbouring Chechnya, an Islamist insurgency spread to Dagestan.</s>Five people have been killed after gunman opened fire with a hunting rifle on worshippers leaving a church service in Russia's Dagestan region.

The shooting took place on Sunday evening in Kizlyar, a town of about 50,000 people on the border with Chechnya.

The gunman was shot dead by police.

Four people died at the scene and a fifth victim died while being treated in hospital, a health ministry spokesman told the Russian TASS news agency.

Three others were wounded in the attack.

Police told TASS that the gunman was a 22-year-old resident of the city. It was not immediately clear what motivated the shooting.

Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea.

Following two separatist wars in neighbouring Chechnya, an Islamist insurgency spread to Dagestan.</s>Share this article with Google Plus

Five people have been shot dead after a gunman opened fire on worshippers leaving a church in southern Russia.

Initial reports suggest all five victims of the attack in the town of Kizlyar are women.

At least five others were injured in the shooting in Kizlyar, a town of roughly 50,000 people in the Dagestan region.

They include two members of local security services and two civilians, also women, the Interfax news agency said.

Police have killed the attacker, who has been identified as a 22-year-old local man, Russian media reported.

Security services on duty nearby managed to shoot and kill the man, who was found with bullets and a knife on his person as well as the rifle.

The victims were leaving the church following a service when the gunman opened fire with a hunting rifle.

It happened on Maslenitsa, a Christian holiday marking the last day before Lent according to the eastern Orthodox calendar.

No immediate motive for the shooting was revealed.

Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea.

Following two separatist wars in neighbouring Chechnya, an Islamist insurgency spread to Dagestan.</s>A shooter opened fire at a church in the Northern Caucasus region of southern Russia on Sunday, killing five people and wounding two others, authorities said, according to state media.

The incident took place at a church in Kizlyar in the restive Russian republic of Dagestan.

Police responded, traded fire with the shooter and killed him, the authorities said. Two officers were injured in the gunfight, they said.

The shooting occurred during Maslenitsa, a festival celebrated in Russia that is full of dancing, lots of pancakes and carnival-like festivities.

Russian state news agency Tass spoke to a law enforcement source who said that “the unknown person opened fire on people celebrating Maslenitsa.”

Kizlyar Mayor Alexander Shuvalov was quoted by Tass as saying that the attacker opened fire on “people after leaving the service.”

It was not immediately known who was behind the attack.

Dagestan and its neighbor Chechnya have been wracked by separatist and Islamic violence in recent years.</s>Five women were killed and several others were injured after a gunman opened fire with a hunting rifle on people leaving a church service in Russia's Dagestan region on Sunday, Russian media outlets reported.

The shooting unfolded outside a church in Kizlyar, a town of about 50,000 people on the border with Chechnya. The Russian news agency TASS cited Svetlana Petrenko of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation as the source for the number of people killed and wounded.

The Islamic State terror network claimed responsibility, according to its Amaq media agency. ISIS said the killer was a "soldier of the caliphate," a man known as Khalil al-Dagestani, The New York Times reported.

The gunman was shot dead by police responding to the scene, a law enforcement source told the Interfax news agency. According to Interfax, the gunman has been identified as a local man in his early 20s.

"People were leaving a church after an evening service when he opened gunfire at them," Shuvalov told TASS. Two police officers and a woman were among the wounded, according to Shuvalov. One woman later died at a hospital, a law enforcement source told RIA Novosti.

A witness posted a video of the shooting on Twitter, which captured the moment shots were being fired.

Russian television station REN-TV posted surveillance video showing the gunman walking with the gun along main streets of the city.

Russian news outlets also posted photos on social media of the alleged weapon used in the attack, in addition to a body in front of the church covered by a tarp.

Parishioners were at the church celebrating the end of the Russian festival of Maslenitsa, a holiday which marks the start of Lent for Russian Orthodox Christians, according to RT.

A witness to the shooting, Oksana, told RT the gunman targeted people as they were leaving the church, but many took cover inside the building.

“There were a lot of people there, moms with little children, elderly people. I believe God saved us, not allowing the man to get inside the church,” the woman told the news outlet.

Authorities have not yet disclosed what motivated the shooting, but the shooting took place in the region where Moscow has led two wars against separatists and radical religious groups since the 1991 Soviet collapse. The region has also seen a large number of people join ISIS, according to Reuters.

Dagestan is a predominantly Muslim region between Chechnya and the Caspian Sea. Following two separatist wars in neighboring Chechnya, an Islamist insurgency spread to Dagestan.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A gunman kills five people and wounds several others at a church in Kizlyar, Dagestan, Russia. Police later shoot and kill him.