Pro-Palestinian mobs force flight from Israel to Russia to be diverted — and target next airport where it landed, too

A flight from Israel to Russia had to be diverted Sunday — and still faced riots at the next airport where it landed — when pro-Palestinian mobs stormed the facilities seeking to attack Jewish flyers, reports said.

The flight initially bound for Makhachkala International Airport in the heavily Muslim Russian Republic of Dagestan was diverted after scores of people waving Palestinian flags took over the facility upon learning of the flight from Tel Aviv, according to the Moscow Times.

The aircraft ended up landing at a nearby airport, which rioters were able to storm as well, with harrowing footage showing a group of people hopping fences onto the tarmac to try and reach the plane.

Videos posted to social media showed airport staff warning passengers to remain in the plane as the facility was overrun when the jet landed at 7:17 p.m. local time.

Footage also depicted rioters stopping cars and travelers at the airport and allegedly checking their passports to see if they were Jewish.

Some of the demonstrators were seen holding signs that read, “Child killers have no place in Dagestan” and “We are against Jewish refugees.”

The mob allegedly forced some travelers at the airport to denounce Israel on camera and agree that Jewish refugees were not welcome to stay in Dagestan.

Despite the chaos, Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that there were no Israeli citizens or Jewish people aboard the flight from Tel Aviv.

But other Jewish passengers in the airport at the time were gathered by security and scheduled to be evacuated to Moscow “at the earliest convenience,” the Jerusalem Post said.

All flights to and from Makhachkala were temporarily suspended because of the security breaches, according to Russia’s civil aviation agency.

The drama unfolded after several channels on Telegram went up urging residents in Dagestan, which has a Muslim population of 83%, to riot at the airports and root out Jewish passengers, according to Medizona, an independent Russian news outlet.

Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes in Dagestan, said Sunday that it has opened a criminal investigation on the disturbing incident, citing “organized mass disorder,” a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Local Islamic leaders at the The Coordination Center for Muslims of the North Caucasus condemned the violence and called on residents not to answer the calls of violence against Jewish people being spread online.  

Over the weekend, rioters entered a hotel in the region and checked for Israeli citizens after rumors that “Jewish refugees” were staying there, Medizona reported.

The desperate situation for Jewish refugees harkens back to the MS St. Louis, a ship carrying more than 900 Jews who lost their homes during the Holocaust and were refused entry into the US before landing in Cuba in 1939.

The recent rise in antisemitism has come since Israel declared war against Hamas after the terrorist group killed more than 1,400 people in the Jewish country Oct. 7.

US House Speaker Mike Johnson announced Sunday that the Republican-led chamber is expected to pass a $14.5 billion Israel aid bill this week.

“We’re going to move a standalone Israel funding bill this week in the House,” Johnson said on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures, stating that it would not include aid for Ukraine’s fight against Russia. “We believe that that is a pressing and urgent need.”