11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

During April and May 2007, security sweeps were conducted by federal forces and local law enforcement in villages of Ali-Yurt, Surkhakhi, Gaybek-Yurt, and Vosnesenovskaya, and in town of Malgobek ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 22611]

"According to Memorial, the resumption of security sweeps, known as "zachistki," added to abuses reported in the North Caucasus. During April and May, sweeps were conducted by federal forces and local law enforcement in the villages of Ali-Yurt, Surkhakhi, Gaybek-Yurt, and Vosnesenovskaya, and in the town of Malgobek in Chechnya. The sweeps lasted for several days and, in some cases, officers refused to identify themselves. In at least one case, security forces also looted homes and beat civilians. Similar security sweeps were conducted in Ingushetiya. Human rights activists believed that such operations contributed to a culture of fear that authorities used to minimize resistance."

Document(s): Open document

06.09.2006 - Source: Freedom House

Russian authorities condemned sweep operation conducted by pro-Russian Chechen militias in Borozdinovskaya, but condemnation lacks credibility ("The Worst of the Worst: The World's Most Repressive Societies 2006") [ID 17261]

"Russian troops engage in so-called mopping-up operations in which they seal off entire towns and conduct house-to-house searches for suspected rebels. During these security sweeps, soldiers have been accused of beating and torturing civilians, looting, and extorting money. Thousands of Chechens have gone missing or been found dead after such operations. Russian authorities strongly condemned a sweep operation conducted by pro-Russian Chechen militias in the village of Borozdinovskaya in northeastern Chechnya on June 4 that triggered an exodus to neighboring Dagestan of several hundred local families. The condemnation, however, lacked credibility, as it appeared to be a move to neutralize Chechen fighting forces that in the past had crossed swords with Kadyrov’s militias."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Villagers flee to Dagestan after security sweep in June 2005 in village of Borozdinovskaya ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 16300]

"In June members of the pro-Moscow Vostok (East) Battalion conducted a security sweep in the village of Borozdinovskaya. During that operation 11 men from the village were detained. Some homes in the village were burned and two villagers were killed. Subsequently villagers left en masse and crossed into the neighboring republic of Dagestan. Although prosecutors announced an investigation, and federal and Chechen officials publicly called for those responsible to be held accountable, the whereabouts of the men remain unknown. Military prosecutors initiated criminal proceedings against one Vostok commander Mukhadi Aziyev. A military court in Chechnya convicted him in October of abuse of power, and he received a three-year suspended sentence."

Document(s): Open document

30.06.2005 - Source: ReliefWeb

Ingushetia: 2 refugees and 1 other civilian arrested in Chechen refugee camp during mopping-up operation carried out by unknown armed men (""Mop-up" at refugee camp in Ingushetia (PW)") [#33392],  [ID 16301]

Document(s): Open document

28.06.2005 - Source: ReliefWeb

2 guerrillas killed, 4 local residents detained, and 3 soldiers injured in operation carried out by forces of Chechen battalion “Zapad” and Russian military subdivisions in Pervomayskaya ("Chechnya: Sweep operation in Pervomayskaya; soldiers come under fire in Agishbatoy (PW)") [#33282],  [ID 16302]

"As a result of a special operation carried out on Tuesday in the village of Pervomayskaya in the Groznensky district, two guerrillas have been killed, four local residents suspected of links with units of the Chechen resistance have been detained, and three soldiers have been wounded. The operation, in which the combined forces of the Chechen battalion “Zapad” and Russian military subdivisions took part, began in the morning and ended in late afternoon. In the course of the operation large-caliber weapons and armoured vehicles were used."

Document(s): Open document

16.06.2005 - Source: ReliefWeb

Special operation conducted in Borozdinovskaya in June 2005; 11 young men detained by Russian troops; villagers fled to Dagestan ("Villagers flee Russia's Chechnya after abductions (Reuters)") [#33089],  [ID 16303]

Document(s): Open document

01.06.2005 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Chechnya: Report focused on disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Sernovodsk and other villages of Sunzha District (cases of 2004 documented) ("Chechnya – Disappearances and Extrajudicial Killings in Sernovodsk and Other Villages of the Sunzha District of Chechnya. July-August 2004") [#33062],  [ID 16304]

Document(s): Open document

30.03.2005 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Chechnya: Case reports on extrajudicial killings, 'disappearances', illegal arrest and torture ("Chechnya: More of the Same. Extrajudicial Killings, 'Disappearances', Illegal Arrest, Torture") [#30700],  [ID 16305]

Document(s): Open document

12.01.2005 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Chechnya: several Kotar-Yurt residents detained during ‘clean-up’operation led by deputy PM Kadyrovand, and have since disappeared; 2 Grozny residents detained and tortured by members of Chechnya’s pro-Moscow presidential security service (Kadyrovtsy) ("Chechnya: New Year, New Brutality") [#28165],  [ID 16306]

"Members of Chechnya’s pro-Moscow presidential security service – or “Kadyrovtsy” as they are more commonly known – supported by Russian federal soldiers surrounded a series of villages in the Achkhoi-Martan region in the west of the republic last week and carried out the brutal search operations known as “clean-ups”. All the villagers in Valerik and Kotar-Yurt were made to show their documents and many houses were forcibly searched. The January 4 operation was led by deputy prime minister Ramzan Kadyrov, son of former Chechen leader Akhmad Kadyrov after whom the presidential unit is named. In Kotar-Yurt, several locals were detained and have since disappeared. One of them, Aslan Gairbekov, had recently returned from Russia. Another man, a 27-year-old with the surname Yamlikhanov, had reportedly fought in the first Chechen conflict of 1994-96 and been officially amnestied, but this did not save him from being taken away by the Kadyrovtsy. [...] Many believe that the upsurge in brutality, especially on the part of the Kadyrovtsy, stems from their ambition finally to track down Maskhadov and radical Chechen commander Shamil Basayev, both of whom have operated freely in Chechnya for more than five years since the start of the second Chechen conflict in 1999. On January 2, more than two dozen Kadyrovtsy made a raid on a house in the Proletarskoye suburb of Grozny and detained 23-year-old Zaurbek Gaziev, father of two small children."

Document(s): Open document

24.12.2004 - Source: ReliefWeb

Chechnya: 2 women involved in many terrorist attacks over the past few years, arbitrarily detained and tortured following targeted operations by Russian special forces ("Chechen women 'detained and tortured': UN (AFP)") [#27871],  [ID 16307]

Document(s): Open document

17.11.2004 - Source: Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers

Boys suspected to be Chechen rebels have been targeted by the Russian army and have “disappeared” in custody or been killed ("Child soldiers global report 2004") [#27189],  [ID 16308]

"Boys suspected to be Chechen rebels have been targeted by the Russian army and have “disappeared” in custody or been killed.21 During “cleansing” operations (zachistki), Russian troops have repeatedly closed off villages and districts, ostensibly to identify participants in the armed opposition. Boys were reported to be particularly vulnerable and were routinely rounded up, sent to “filtration camps” and tortured.22 One 16 year old, after being tortured in a “filtration camp”, said “I was relieved when they took us out to be shot”.23 In 2002 the official with responsibility for children’s rights in Chechnya’s pro-Russian administration stated that over 90 children had “disappeared” over the preceding year in cases “directly linked to actions by the military” during zachistki operations. Military officials responded that the children had been eliminated because they had collaborated with rebel fighters.24 One of the highest-ranking commanders in Chechnya, General Vladimir Shamanov, when asked “Is the child of a bandit also a bandit?”, responded “Certainly”."

Document(s): Open document

04.08.2004 - Source: International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Chechnya - cases of disappearances, extrajudicial killings, unlawful detentions, documented ("Chechnya: Enforced “Disappearances”, Extrajudicial Killings and Unlawful Detentions – An Update") [#24474],  [ID 16309]

Document(s): Open document

09.06.2004 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Chechnya: unidentified people in masks and army fatigues killed and abducted people from the village of Kalaus and in Grozny, following the May 9 assassination of pro-Moscow leader Kadyrov ("Killings on the Increase") [#23205],  [ID 16310]

Document(s): Open document

02.06.2004 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Chechnya: five Russian soldiers and two Chechen militants; at least 200 people were arrested in security sweeps across the republic ("Five Soldiers, Two Militants Killed In Chechnya") [#23025],  [ID 16311]

Document(s): Open document

14.04.2004 - Source: ReliefWeb

With the beginning of the operation for the capture of Ichkerian President Aslan Maskhadov fighting reported from mountain areas of Chechnya ("Fighting reported from mountain areas of Chechnya (Prague Watchdog)") [#21378],  [ID 16312]

"The Russian military has become more active recently in the mountain areas of Chechnya. For several days houses have vibrated from bomb explosions and missiles flying overhead. As is asserted in Grozny, the operation for the capture of Ichkerian President Aslan Maskhadov has begun. Taking part in this operation are Russian special troops and the pro-Kadyrov Chechen armed units under the command of Sulim Yamadayev. For the first time in six months, planes are now flying overhead, targeting the bases of Chechen guerrillas. According to unofficial reports, Chechen guerrillas shot down a helicopter in the Nozhai-Yurt district bordering Dagestan."

Document(s): Open document

14.04.2004 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya: 2 men found shot dead after having been seized by Russian security forces ("Extrajudicial executions in Chechnya") [#21344],  [ID 16313]

"On the morning of April 11 in the village of Stari Atagi in the Grozny region, Russian security forces seized 26 year old Ruslan Sambiev and took him in an unknown direction. According to witnesses, soldiers in masks robbed the Sambiev house at dawn and, without accusing him of anything, took Ruslan with them. On the night of the same day, Ruslan’s corpse was found in the village of Prigorodni, bearing the marks of torture and gunshot wounds to the head. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

13.04.2004 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Chechnya: Bodies of 9 men bearing the marks of extrajudicial execution found ("Russia: Nine Civilians Extrajudicially Executed in Chechnya") [#21254],  [ID 16314]

"The bodies of nine men bearing the marks of extrajudicial execution were found in Chechnya on Friday, Human Rights Watch said today. Eight of the men had been forcibly disappeared two weeks ago after armed men, presumed to be Russian forces, took them from their homes. [...] About ten days ago, Human Rights Watch researchers spoke with villagers from Duba-Yurt in southern Chechnya while they were still searching for their “disappeared” relatives. They told Human Rights Watch that at around 2 a.m. on March 27, eight military vehicles bearing smudged number plates entered the village. Among the vehicles were armored personnel carriers, used exclusively by Russian forces. A large group of masked men in camouflage uniforms, who had arrived in these vehicles, raided 19 houses in Duba-Yurt and detained 11 men between the ages of 28 and 44. Several witnesses independently told Human Rights Watch that the armed men—who spoke Russian without a Chechen accent—burst into the houses, forced the families to the floor at gunpoint, and took the men away without checking their documents or giving them a chance to dress. The armed men released three of the detainees near the village the same night, but the remaining eight subsequently “disappeared.” Among them were Bai-Ali Elmurzaev (b.1968), Idris Elmurzaev (b. 1971), Sharip Elmurzaev (b.1974), Apti Murtazov (b.1964), Lechi Shoipov (b.1960), Zelimkhan Osmaev (b.1975), Khusim Khadzhimuradov (b.1975), and Isa Khadzhimuradov (b. 1965). [...]"

Document(s): Open document

12.04.2004 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya: Corpses of 9 men bearing gun wounds and marks of torture found in Serzhen-Yurt ("In Chechnya the corpses of recently kidnapped Chechens have been found") [#21340],  [ID 16315]

"On the day of April 9 on the outskirts of Serzhen-Yurt in the Shalinsky region local residents discovered the corpses of 9 men, bearing the marks of gun wounds. [...] They were residents of Duba-Yurt in the Shalinsky region. The were taken by Russian security forces during a mopping up operation in the village which occurred on March 27 of this year. [...] According to witnesses, the bodies bore the marks of torture. They had all been shot in the head."

Document(s): Open document

01.04.2004 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya, Sunzhensk region: "Zachistka" cleansing operation leads to mass detention in Sernovodskaya and Assinovskaya ("Large scale cleansing operation underway in Chechen villages") [#21027],  [ID 16316]

"According to eyewitness accounts, on 27 March Russian servicemen and pro-Moscow Chechens loyal to Ahmat Kadirov positioned military hardware on the outskirts of Sernovodskaya. The forces involved in the operation have since established provisional station in three places: in a school; in a building for social services and housing; and in the vicinity of a pumping station. At the school, where a large number of Russian soldiers have assembled, an improvised so-called “filtration point” has been organized, to which all detainees are brought. In addition, tents were assembled at the school, along with a field kitchen of sorts: this by shooting into a gas mains and cooking with the outflowing ignited gas. According to preliminary information, the first few days of the zachistka saw members of the Russian armed forces arresting around 30 people, most of whom were young males from the age of 14 upwards including schoolboys from the very school where the arrestees were taken to. Only as a result of the active intervention of the local administration head, Vaha Arsamakov, were the majority of the detainees set free. Many of the people who had to go through the process of “filtration” were badly hurt. For example, the young inhabitant Isigov was brutally beaten. According to him, while being beaten questions were fired at him concerning the whereabouts of members of the Chechen opposition. At the time of writing, several local inhabitants remained in detention."

Document(s): Open document

03.03.2004 - Source: Chechen Times

Chechnya: Report on abductions and killings of civilians ("Four dead bodies discovered in Chechnya; people still missing (CNO Information Center)") [#20324],  [ID 16317]

Document(s): Open document

31.01.2004 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya: Large-scale ‘special operations’ carried out by security organs and Russian military in Aleroi, Shali and Assinovskaya; local residents disappeared ("Purges in Chechnya continue") [#19064],  [ID 16318]

Document(s): Open document

29.01.2004 - Source: Amnesty International

2 women are believed to have been abducted by Russian federal forces in the Chechen Republic ("Russian Federation - UA 32/04") [#19115],  [ID 16319]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

14.10.2003 - Source: Prima News

Chechnya: Forested heights close to the settlement of Bamut (Achkhoj-Martanovsky region) subjected to extensive bombardement by Russian military aircraft; following bomb attack on Russian military vehicle "zachistka" conducted by Russian military in Grozny (Staropromyslovsky area) ("Chechnya bombed and "cleansed"") [#16771],  [ID 16320]

Document(s): Open document

30.07.2003 - Source: Chechen Times

Chechnya: Federal servicemen carried out overnight a "clean-up" operation in the Oktyabrsky district in the Chechen capital Grozny; several locals allegedly detained ("Arbitrary arrests in Grozny (Prima News Agency)") [#15187],  [ID 16321]

"Federal servicemen carried out overnight a "clean-up" operation in the Oktyabrsky district in the Chechen capital Grozny. Several locals were reportedly detained, including Denis Aliyev, aged 16. According to the boy's mother, federals did not identify themselves and offered no explanation for the arrest. The Russian-Chechen Friendship Society reported that a dozen armed men burst at night into the Aliyevs' house, located in the 12th residential neighborhood of the Oktyabrsky district. All of them were wearing masks and camouflage. They arrived in several vehicles but the darkness of the night did not allow to see clearly their license plates. In the house there were Busana Aliyeva and her two children, including Denis still a schoolboy. The woman's father had died in an artillery attack during the second Chechen war."

Document(s): Open document

26.07.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Russian servicemen conducted a 'sweep' in Zagriazhsky village near Grozny on July 15; young man detained and abducted ("Rights activists blame Russian forces for extrajudicial executions") [#15192],  [ID 16322]

"On July 25, a Russian daily Internet version of Grani.Ru newspaper (www.grani.ru) reported citing a source in Chechnya's Interior Ministry of a suicide bombing attempt in Staropromyslovsky district of Groznyy. According to the report a suicide bomber allegedly attempted to demolish a Russian check point # 19. The check point was set in Staropromyskovsky district of the Chechen capital in the vicinity of Zagriazhsky village. Interior Ministry officials told "Grani" correspondent that the bomber's attempt failed he killed himself setting off the explosives. The suicide bomber's name was reported also. Nevertheless, human rights offered another version of the incident based on proved information, which said a young man with this name had been detained and abducted by Russian servicemen ten days ago, on July 15, while they conducted a 'sweep' in Zagriazhsky village. The next day young man's remains blown up to bits were discovered in "Solty Ravine" just a few kms from the village. The 'sweep' was motivated by July 15 incident at the check point # 19 when a grenade blast killed one and injured several servicemen at the site. The locals maintained that was an apparent accidental explosion. The grenade detonation in the hands of a servicemen on duty was caused by reckless handling. Besides, at the moment the soldier who was heavily drunk, locals said."

Document(s): Open document

21.07.2003 - Source: Prague Watchdog

Chechnya: 8 people detained in a mop-up operation conducted by Russian soldiers in the Zavodskoy district of Grozny; fate of several of the detainees remains unknown ("Russian soldiers mop up Chernorechye in Grozny, detain eight people") [#14576],  [ID 16323]

"Russian servicemen detained eight people including three girls during a mop-up operation in the Chernorechye neighborhood in the Zavodskoy district of Grozny several days ago. The operation, which involved a large number of military vehicles and carriers, was carried out on July 16 in the evening. The mop-up zone included apartment houses on the Mogilevskaya, Verkhoyanskaya, Pyatigorskaya, and Vyborgskaya Streets. The soldiers broke into flats without introducing themselves or explaining the reasons for their actions, and behaved in a very rough manner. The afflicted residents said the mop-up was carried out by Russian soldiers, not by members of local law enforcement agencies. All the eight detained people were loaded into trucks and driven off in the direction of the military garrison. Malika Zaurbekova, Fatima Zaurbekova, and Ayza Impiyeva said what happened next: "They took all of us, men and women, from Chernorechye in one military truck within a convoy of vehicles. The journey lasted about half an hour with stops. They put black plastic bags over our heads and sealed the positions of our eyes with Scotch tape. When we arrived, they took us up some stairs and placed us in a room. They laid us face-down on the floor. The youths were in the room with us. We heard how they were beaten and insulted. [...] The fate of the other detainees remains unknown. According to some sources, two of them - Latayev and Aliyev - managed to escape. The soldiers opened fire at them. Their whereabouts are still unknown. There is no news about the remaining three - Kagirov, Shakhgiriyev, and Nakayev. The following day after these events local residents discovered two bodies in a pit at the Minutka Square in the center of Grozny. The dead bodies, which had no clothes, had clearly visible gunshot wounds, including in the region of the head (probably final shots). One of the corpses had the lower part of the body missing. Most probably the unknown men were first killed and then dumped in the pit, after which a hand-grenade was thrown in there."

Document(s): Open document

17.06.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Russian forces launched a large scale ‘special operation’ in Staropromyslovsky district of Grozny ("Punitive ‘sweep up’ in Grozny’s district") [#15200],  [ID 16324]

"On the morning of June 17, Russian forces launched a large scale ‘special operation’ in Staropromyslovsky district of the Chechen capital. The Russian serviceman backed by armored vehicles people said blockaded the district territory to conduct identity checks in Katayama and Tashkala settlements as well as unlawful searching of some houses. This ‘sweep’ was instigated by the discovery of two Russian servicemen killed the day before. Their corpses were found Tuesday morning nearby railroad running along the Staropromyslovskoye highway. [...] There were not yet any report available of civilians being detained while the servicemen ‘swept’ the district."

Document(s): Open document

03.06.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Russian servicemen conduct their regular “special operation” in the vicinity of Argun; killings, abductions ("Argun vicinity “mopped up” again") [#15248],  [ID 16325]

Document(s): Open document

31.05.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: 3 dead Russian women discovered in Naursky district ("Chechnya’s Naursky district women killed") [#15250],  [ID 16326]

Document(s): Open document

30.05.2003 - Source: Amnesty International

Chechenya: man reportedly abducted by unidentified armed men from his home in Kataiama in the Staropromyslovskii region of Grozny/ his whereabouts are unknown and there are fears he is at risk of torture/ there are also concerns that he may have been abducted by federal forces or even extrajudicially executed ("Russian Federation/ Chechenya - UA 154/03") [#13210],  [ID 16327]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

26.05.2003 - Source: Memorial Human Rights Center

Chechen Republic: 6 local people killed in the Kalinovskaia settlement (Naurskij region) by armed people ("Political Crime in the Kalinovskaia settlement") [#14288],  [ID 16328]

Document(s): Open document

14.05.2003 - Source: Council of Europe - Secretary General

300 cases, missing persons have been illegally arrested by military troops ("Twenty-seventh interim report by the Secretary General on the presence of the Council of Europe’s experts in the Office of the Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for ensuring Human Rights and Civil Rights and Freedoms in the Chechen Republic – period from 19 February to 13 May 2003 [SG/Inf(2003) 23]") [#14573],  [ID 16329]

"16. According to the Prosecutor of the Chechen Republic, it appears that in 300 cases, missing persons have been illegally arrested by military troops. As an example, three men were reported missing after being arrested on 16 March 2003 at the “Kavkaz” checkpoint close to the borders between Chechnya and Ingushetia. The “Kavkaz” checkpoint is known to be a place where such problems often arise."

Document(s): Open document
Addendum

10.05.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: local inhabitant detained in Gudermez ("Local inhabitant detained in Gudermez") [#15210],  [ID 16330]

Document(s): Open document

04.05.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Chechnya: 2 Chechens in Itum-Kaly district detained by Russian servicemen ("Two men detained in Shatoy district") [#15213],  [ID 16331]

Document(s): Open document

03.05.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Russian army carries out another "special operation" in Alkhan-Kala of Groznensky district ("Alkhan-Kala "Mopped up" again") [#15256],  [ID 16332]

Document(s): Open document

26.04.2003 - Source: Caucasus Times

Chechnya: Unidentified dead bodies of shot males found among the ruins of cafe “Makhachkala” on the square “Minutka” of Ockyabersky district of Grozny; according to locals the number of killed and missing people is gradually increasing ("Corpses of civilians are still being found in Groznyy") [#15214],  [ID 16333]

"Unidentified dead bodies of shot males have been found among the ruins of cafe “Makhachkala” on the square “Minutka” of Ockyabersky district of the Chechen capital. Those, who saw the corpses said the three young men had being tortured severely and finally had fatal shots in heads. So far, only one dead body has been identified. It appeared to be Mansur Zakryev, 28, of Novy Atagi village of Shali area. This year at the turn of April Mansur was detained and taken away by uniformed armed men wearing masks in a district of Groznyy. Soon afterwards he disappeared. According to Oktyabersky district police department of Groznyy report they have brought a criminal case and the crime is being investigated. “We’ve been trying to identify those two dead men,” an officer of Ministry of Internal Affairs said, “They might possibly be killed in a gangsters conflict. This triple murder is also considered to be committed out of revenge or any other reason. We also have information that one of killed man was abducted two weeks earlier by uniformed people. We’ve been verifying all versions”. Nevertheless, the locals say the number of killed and missing people is gradually increasing in the republic."

Document(s): Open document

17.04.2003 - Source: Amnesty International

Chechen civilians continue to "disappear" during raids by Russian troops on villages, many have later been found in mass graves ("UN Commission on Human Rights: Defeat of Chechnya resolution extremely disappointing") [#12161],  [ID 16334]

""Human rights abuses continue to take place on a daily basis in Chechnya. The Commission's lack of action on this situation is a blatant disregard of the suffering of the victims of such abuses and their relatives, and the risks to which civilians continue to be exposed." Chechen civilians continue to "disappear" during raids by Russian troops on villages, many have later been found in mass graves."

Document(s): Open document