Russian news agency TASS has reported that residents of different districts in Dagestan and other regions of the North Caucasian Federal District came to commemorate the killed parishioners of St. George Cathedral on Tuesday, February 20. Among those present were relatives of the victims, representatives of Dagestan authorities, soldiers, Cossacks, and ordinary residents.
With the blessing of Archbishop Varlaam of Makhachkala and Grozny, all of the killed women were buried on the territory of St. George Cathedral.
“Hundreds of Kizlyar residents came here early in the morning to help. People are still in shock and are lost for words to express their sorrow and grief. We cannot bring ourselves to take away the bags of our parishioner, Irina Melkomova, to whom all of those who were on the territory and inside the temple owe their lives. It was her who flung herself onto the armed criminal and tried to take out his weapon with her bags. While she was distracting him, the other parishioners managed to take shelter inside locking the doors,” said Father Pavel Kalikin, Rector of the cathedral.
February 20 was declared the Day of Mourning in Kizlyar in honor of those who were shot down.
This article was translated from Russian.
