An imam in Russia's Daghestan region in the North Caucasus has been killed.
The Investigative Committee of Russia says two masked men shot dead Magomed Khidirov early in the morning of September 9 while he was on his way to a mosque in Novy Kurush.
The village is located in Daghestan's western Khasavyurt district bordering Chechnya.
The killing of Khidirov, 34, came three weeks after another Islamic cleric, Zamirbek Makhmutov, 32, was shot dead in Russia's Stavropol region neighboring Daghestan.
Imams appointed by the officially registered Spiritual Directorates of Muslims across Russia usually support the government's policies and propagate moderate Islam.
They are often attacked by radical Islamist groups, which call for separation from Russia and the establishment of an Islamic state in the North Caucasus.
