Suicide bomber kills five at Dagestan military base

A suicide bomber drove a car packed with explosives into a military base in the North Caucasus region of Dagestan on Sunday, killing at least five people. Over 30 more were wounded in the attack, which took place at a base used by a special motorcycle rifle brigade at Dalny, near the city of Buynaksk.

Reuters

The bomber struck at around 00.30 am local time.

Guards managed to block the entrance to the base with a military truck, with which the attacker's vehicle collided.

Unnamed officials said five people died in the attack, three at the scene and two in hospital. At least 35 others are reported wounded, two of them critically.

However, Russia's defence ministry gave the death toll as three, with 33 wounded.

The first explosion was followed by a second blast on a highway nearby, but no casualties were reported.

In response to the attack, the defence ministry has imposed a state of increased security at military sites throughout its Southern Military District, and dispatched a special commission to Dalny.

The blast highlights the necessity of ongoing operations to "neutralise" rebels in Dagestan, said regional president Magomedsalam Magomedov.

On Saturday, a car bomb in the regional capital Makhachkala wounded a senior Russian
official and killed his driver.