Residents of the Separatorny settlement demanded government intervention in the land dispute.

Illegal construction remains a pressing issue in Makhachkala. Back in 2018, bailiffs published a list of properties slated for demolition, which included approximately 50 buildings. However, according to the Makhachkala mayor's office, courts have ordered the demolition of more than 200 illegally constructed structures. In January 2023, Makhachkala residents reported that illegal construction continued to be actively undertaken in the city, despite the authorities' declared campaign against it.

A video message from residents of the Separatorny settlement to the head of the Dagestan government, Magomed Ramazanov, was published on the Instagram* public page makhachkala_ on June 19. The footage shows several dozen men. One of them speaks on camera.

"We, the residents of the Separatorny settlement, would like to appeal to Magomed Ramazanov—specifically to you—with a request to intervene in the situation that has been created today by the Tarki side. Today, they are trying to come to us, verbally and physically, to intimidate us, to make us understand that these lands will be taken away from us," he said in the video footage.

A resident of the Separatorny settlement stated that the residents of Tarki claim to have the support of a high-ranking official. This is precisely why the residents of the Separatorny settlement appealed to the chairman of the Dagestan government. If the authorities do not respond, the conflict could escalate, he emphasized. "We are not the instigators of this conflict, we don't want this conflict," said a resident of Separatorny Settlement.

As of 1:00 PM Moscow time on June 20, this post on the Instagram* public page makhachkala_, which has approximately 245,000 followers, had garnered 683 likes and 306 comments. Some of the authors called for the dispute to be resolved within the legal framework.

"Considering that we live in a state governed by the rule of law, this issue must be resolved within the framework of current legislation. A legal assessment must be made," wrote murtazali.magomedov.

"How is this possible? Who has the right to take away land?" - asked user mumishka290.

"It's time to end this squabble once and for all. What are you talking about? A person builds and lives where he bought the land," stated ptichka889.

"We're definitely back to the 90s, with all these squabbles again," noted 2026marjana.

Another group of commentators demanded an investigation by the authorized bodies. "It wouldn't hurt to conduct an inspection and take it back from those who appropriated the plots," noted _abrek0595.

"You'd better explain who gave you the right to develop this entire area," stated bammatova_5555.

"It's embarrassing to even read the comments. Live in peace already," emphasized user d.milya.a.

As of 13:00 Moscow time on June 20, there were no comments on the websites of the head of state and the government of Dagestan regarding the video address by residents of the Separatorny settlement.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that in 2013, mass riots occurred in the Karaman area near Makhachkala, and in 2014, residents of the villages of Tarki, Kyakhulai, and Alburikent A hunger strike was held in Karaman, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "Conflict in Karaman." In June 2018, over 200 residents of the village of Nizhneye Kazanishche in the Buinaksk District and the village of Talgi in the suburbs of Makhachkala held a meeting to demand that the republic's authorities stop the seizure of agricultural land from the Kumyks.

The Kumyks are a people whose ethnic base consists of the indigenous population of the lowland territories of Dagestan. Small groups of Kumyks live in Chechnya, Ingushetia, and North Ossetia, according to the article "Kumyks" in the "Directory" section of the "Caucasian Knot."

* Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) is banned in Russia.