Persoverzicht Tsjetsjenië - augustus 2010

• 2010-09-02
• Europa in de wereld

2 augustus 2010

Policeman killed in Dagestan: Three militants broke into the home of a senior investigator in Dagestan on Sunday and shot him dead after binding his wife and son with tape in the next room. The attack was believed to be connected to the officer's work. Meanwhile, a convoy of elite police troops was attacked while travelling to a mountainous district on Saturday, and 12 were wounded in a two-hour fight. In Chechnya, three unidentified men armed with Kalashnikovs ambushed a police patrol early Sunday in Grozny and killed two officers. (All media)

Chechen rebel leader’s steps down: Ekho Moskvy radio reports that Doku Umarov, the leaders of the Chechen rebel group, has stepped down and appointed a successor to fight Russia’s central rule in the North Caucasus. According to reports the announcement was made through the unofficial Islamic website kavkacenter.com on Sunday. Umarov has claimed responsibility for a number of attacks in recent months, including the March 29 bombings of the Moscow metro that killed at least 40 people. (Ekho Moskvy)

3 augustus 2010

Chechen militant leader "resigns": Chechen militant leader Doku Umarov announced on a YouTube video that he "has stepped down" as the leader of the so-called 'Caucasus Emirate' and named Aslambek Vadalov as his successor. He also said that he would continue to fight against Russian rule in the Caucasus. Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov is quoted as having described as "a farce" claims that "one leader has been replaced by another." The press recalls that Umarov has claimed responsibility for the 29 March Moscow metro bombings which killed 40 people, and said that he had ordered the November 2009 Nevsky Express train bombing that killed 26 people. The US State Department officially described Umarov as a terrorist. (Interfax, Kommersant, MT, VN; Ekho Moskvy radio)

5 augustus 2010

Policeman charged with killing Ingush opposition activist shot dead in Nazran: (i) Police officer Ibragim Yevloyev, who has been given a two-year suspended sentence for accidentally killing Ingush opposition activist Magomed Yevloyev in August 2008, was killed in an attack on Wednesday in Nazran. Ibragim Yevloyev's colleague died of wounds he sustained in the same attack. Gazeta.ru reports that it is unclear whether Ibragim Yevloyev's murder was blood revenge. Magomed Yevloyev's father, Yakhya, denied that the family was involved in the attack. (ii) Three police officers were killed in separate attacks in Dagestan on Tuesday. (iii) The Chechen Interior Ministry described as "worthless" a latest statement by Chechen militant leader Doku Umarov, who said that he would not step down as the leader of the so-called 'Caucasus Emirate' and thus retracted his earlier statement. (Gazeta.ru, Interfax, ITAR-TASS, Izvestia, Kommersant, MT, VN)

9 augustus 2010

Operation in Chechnya, attack on police in Dagestan: (i) Two militants were killed in an operation on Sunday in Grozny. A police officer was killed and two others wounded in the operation. Police said the killed militants had been involved in the killing of police officers in Chechnya. (ii) Six policemen were wounded in an attack in Dagestan. (iii) Finland's prosecutors have opened a new criminal case against Mikael Storsjo, the owner and editor of the Chechen separatists' web site Kavkazcenter. Storsjo is accused of "organising the illegal immigration of Chechens to Finland," Finnish human rights activist Johan Beckman said. (ITAR-TASS, Kommersant, RG, VN)

10 augustus 2010

Reshuffles in Interior Ministry: President Medvedev has appointed Mikhail Velichko, currently first deputy head of the Interior Ministry's administrative department, to the post of adviser to Interior Minister Nurgaliyev. Medvedev has also appointed Valery Zhernov as first deputy head of the Interior Ministry's main office for the North Caucasus Federal District. (MT, RG)

11 augustus 2010

Meeting on socio-economic development of Dagestan: Today in Sochi, President Medvedev is scheduled to hold a meeting to discuss the socio-economic development of Dagestan. The meeting will be attended by Dagestani President Magomedsalam Magomedov and officials from the North Caucasus Federal District. A spokeswoman for Presidential envoy to the North Caucasus Federal District Alexander Khloponin is quoted by Gazeta.ru as saying that Khloponin is currently on holidays, but adding that "if he is invited by the President, he will come to the meeting." (Gazeta.ru)

12 augustus 2010

Medvedev slams envoy over lack of investment in Dagestan, fires Dagestani Interior Minister: (i) At a meeting to discuss the socio-economic development of Dagestan yesterday in Sochi, President Medvedev criticised his envoy to the North Caucasus Federal District Khloponin over a lack of investment and lashed out at the Dagestani leadership over the situation with corruption in the republic. RBK daily highlights Dagestani President Magomedsalam Magomedov's proposal to develop a federal targeted programme for Dagestan. After the meeting, it became known that Medvedev has dismissed Dagestan's Interior Minister Ali Magomedov and appointed Abdurashid Magomedov as the new Interior Minister. (ii) Mukhammadvakil Sultanmagomedov, a former senior Muslim cleric, was killed in an attack on Wednesday in Makhachkala. Commentators say the crime aims to destabilize the situation in Dagestan. (Gazeta.ru, Izvestia, Kommersant, RBK daily, RG, VN)

13 augustus 2010

ChechnyaPresident seeks to change his title: (i) Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov has sent a letter to the Chechen Parliament with a proposal to change his official title and stop "the parade of regional presidents." He emphasized that Russia must have only one president, while top regional officials could be called heads of republics, heads of (regional) administrations, governors etc. Kadyrov's spokesman, Alvi Karimov, suggested that the Chechen leader could be titled "imam". (ii) According to media reports, Chechen militant leader Doku Umarov claimed responsibility for a small explosion this week near Gazprom's headquarters in Moscow. (Izvestia, Kommersant, MT, RBK daily, RG, RIAN, Vedomosti, VN)

Dagestan to form Interior Troops battalions staffed with local residents?: In a front-page article, Kommersant reports that special battalions of the Russian Interior Troops, staffed with residents of Dagestan, could be formed in Dagestan to fight against militants in the republic's mountainous areas. The daily recalls that Interior Troops battalions, staffed with Chechens, were formed several years ago in Chechnya – the Sever ('North') and Yug ('South') battalions. (Kommersant)

16 augustus 2010

Leaders of North Caucasus republics back proposal to change regional heads' titles: (i) The heads of North Caucasus republics have backed an idea of changing the titles of regional heads. Earlier, Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov sent a letter to the Chechen Parliament proposing to change his official title and stop "the parade of regional presidents." Kadyrov stressed that there should be only one President in the Russian Federation. Chechen Parliament speaker Dukvakha Abdurakhmanov is quoted as saying on Friday that "the appropriate name could be 'head of the Chechen Republic'" and adding that Kadyrov may change his title in September should the Chechen Parliament approve the initiative. The media refer to an unnamed Kremlin source who suggested that Kadyrov's initiative could launch "a process of unifying the titles of regional leaders" "on a "voluntary basis". (ii) An explosive device went off on a railway track on Sunday in Dagestan. No casualties were reported. Unidentified gunmen opened fire at the base of the 503rd motorised infantry regiment in Ingushetia on Friday. (iii) Kommersamt (Saturday's issue) reports on a split among North Caucasus militants. (Interfax, Izvestia, Kommersant, MT, NG, RG, Vedomosti, VN)

18 augustus 2010

Medvedev meets Kadyrov, Yevkulov: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met with the Chechnya’s President Ramzan Kadyrov and Ingushetia’s President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov in his Bocharov Ruchei residence in Sochi to discussed the development of the North Caucasian Region and the republic's investment projects. During the meeting Medvedev raised the issue of the mine clearance process. Among the other issues on the agenda were unemployment, role of the clergy, expanding of Russian TV broadcasting in this region. (All media)

19 augustus 2010

Probe into Pyatigorsk car bombing: The head of the Investigative Committee within the Prosecutor General's Office Alexander Bastrykin will personally oversee the investigation of the 17 August car bomb attack in Pyatigorsk (the Stavropol territory) that left at least 29 people injured. The investigation established that the car that was blown up near a café in central Pyatigorsk belonged to Chechnya-born Alexander Kim. Kim's whereabouts are unknown. Sources in law enforcement agencies say militants active in the Northern Caucasus are likely involved in the blast in Pyatigorsk as it was "their hallmark". Some observers do not rule out that the attack might have been organised by Chechen militant leader Doku Umarov. It is to be mentioned that Pyatigorsk is the administrative centre of the North Caucasus Federal District. Moscow police have been put on alert in connection with the blasts on 17 August in North Ossetia and Pyatigorsk. Meanwhile, Ingush President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov stated that all organisers of last year's suicide bombing near the building of the Nazran police department have been killed by the special services. The suicide bombing in Nazran left 20 people killed and 140 injured. Vremya novostei writes that the special services earlier said that militant leader Alexander Tikhomirov, known as Said Buryatsky, had been involved in the organisation of the attack in Nazran. (Izvestia, Kommersant, VN)

23 augustus 2010

Suspected mastermind of Moscow subway attacks killed:A leader of an Islamist terror network, who was suspected of masterminding the March subway attacks in Moscow, was killed over the weekend. Magomedali Vagabov was killed Saturday, along with four other insurgents, during a special antiterrorist operation in the North Caucasus republic of Dagestan. Officials said Vagabov worked closely with militant leader Doku Umarov. The two are accused of jointly recruiting juveniles for training in terrorist camps and planned terror attacks using female suicide bombers. (All media)

Militant killed in Chechnya: A prominent member of illegal armed groups has been killed in Grozny, Chechnya. Shamilev was the leader of a gang responsible for numerous attacks on policemen, killings, and bombings. Militants called him the “Emir of Chechnya”, and his real name is Khamza. He was a highly skilled demolition expert, and he trained members of illegal armed units to manufacture and plant explosive devices. (All media)

24 augustus 2010

Chechen clans concluded peace: A prominent Chechen commander was pronounced dead by his family on Monday. Sulim Yamadayev, the former commander of Russia's Vostok battalion in Chechnya, was allegedly shot in late March in the United Arab Emirates. He was on life support since that time. A day before his brother Isa announced a truce with Chechen President Ramsan Kadyrov, whom he had earlier accused of masterminding attempts on his brothers’ life as well as his owns. The other Isa's brother, Ruslan Yamadayev, was gunned down in central Moscow in September 2008. (All media)

26 augustus 2010

A war with Emirs: An article under this title is published by Vremya Novostei and provides analysis of the recent successful operations against separatists by the federal security agencies in the Northern Caucasus. Since 31 December 2009 up to now a number of prominent separatist authorities (Emirs) were eliminated. The article analyses a split among separatists, possible impact of the US troops withdrawal from Iraq on the Northern Caucasus, and speculates on the future security architecture in the Caucasus, which may use as an example a successful developments in Chechnya. (VN)

30 augustus 2010

Militants strike Kadyrov’s home: A military raid on Ñhechen President Ramzan Kadyrov’s home village on Sunday turned into a gunbattle. Clash occurred between militants and Kadyrov's security guards near the Chechen village of Tsentaroi. According to Chechen President Kadyrov, who personally participated in the battle, 12 militants and two bodyguards were killed. Four local residents, including two minors, were also injured during the clash. (All media)

Over 30 militants killed in August, FSB report: According to Federal Security Service Director Alexander Bortnikov more than 30 militants were eliminated in special operations in the North Caucasus in August. Extensive evidence and archive data related to militants have been gathered, including information suggesting that they were connected with international terrorist organizations. (Interfax)