Ruslan Alikhadzhiyev | |
|---|---|
Руслан Алихаджиев | |
 | |
| 4th Chairman of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria | |
| In office 17 March 1997 – May 2000 | |
| Preceded by | Akhyad Idigov |
| Succeeded by | Dardali Khiryayev |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1961 Shali, Checheno-Ingush ASSR, Soviet Union |
| Political party | National Independence Party |
| Awards | Qoman Siy |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Chechen Republic of Ichkeria |
| Years of service | 1994–2000 |
| Rank | Brigadier general |
| Commands | Southern Front |
| Battles/wars | First Chechen War Second Chechen War |
| Disappeared | 17 May 2000 (aged 38–39) Shali, Chechnya |
| Status | Declared dead in absentia 5 July 2007[1] |
Ruslan Shamilevich Alikhadzhiyev (Russian: Руслан Шамилевич Алихаджиев; 1961 – disappeared 17 May 2000) was a Chechen brigadier general and politician who was Speaker of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. He was forcibly disappeared by Russian forces in 2000, during the early stages of the Second Chechen War, and presumably murdered.
Life
Alikhadzhiyev was born in 1961 and fought in the First Chechen War as a field commander. From 1997 to 1999 he was the Chairman of the Parliament of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. During the Second Chechen War he did not take an active part in hostilities and instead sought a negotiated end to the war on behalf of Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov.[2]
Forced disappearance
On 17 May 2000, Alikhadzhiyev was detained by a large group of uniformed Russian soldiers who arrived by armoured vehicles and helicopters at his home in Shali. Alikhadzhiyev, who was with his four minor children and was caring for a sick mother, did not resist; he was handcuffed, blindfolded and taken by an armoured vehicle to a location nearby, which is where he was last seen. Five more men were detained with him at the other locations in Shali this night, but they were all released the next day. On 25 May, Colonel general Valery Manilov confirmed the arrest during a press conference, and on 1 August the state news agency RIA Novosti announced that "Ruslan Alikhadzhiyev, one of the closest allies of Maskhadov, was captured in a special operation by the FSB."[2]
In September 2000, Maskhadov's Chechenpress service claimed Alikhadzhiyev was tortured to death in the Moscow's Lefortovo Prison; AFP, citing sources close to the Chechen leadership, reported that Alikhadzhiyev had died of a heart attack in the Lefortovo. However, the FSB, which operates Lefortovo, denied that it is holding Alikhadzhiyev.[3][4] On 21 September 2000, Yuri Biryukov, the Senior Deputy Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, said answering to a question asked in the Russian State Duma regarding the whereabouts of Alikhadzhiyev that he was killed in August by "the same group of unknown armed people" that had abducted him.[2] A Shalinsky District's prosecutor's office said it opened a case for kidnapping, but "the steps taken to identify the individuals responsible for this crime have been unsuccessful" and the investigation was suspended on 12 December 2000.[5] The case of disappearance and presumed death of Alikhadzhiyev was used by Sergei Kovalev in his defense of Akhmed Zakayev, Maskhadov's envoy on Europe, before the British extradition court in 2003;[6] Zakayev was soon granted a political asylum in Britain.
In July 2007, in the case Alikhadzhieva v Russia, the European Court of Human Rights found Russian authorities responsible for the "disappearance" and presumed killing of Alikhadzhiev and ordered the government to pay his mother 40,000 euros ($54,500) in damages,[7][8][9][10] as well as about 5,000 euros ($5,382) for costs and expenses incurred.[9]
References
- ^ "Alikhadzhiyeva v. Russia". European Court of Human Rights. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- ^ a b c DECISION AS TO THE ADMISSIBILITY OF Application no. 68007/01 by Zura ALIKHADZHIYEVA against Russia[permanent dead link]
- ^ Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs. "Russia". 2001-2009.state.gov. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
- ^ Chechen Politician Disappears Archived 2011-06-05 at the Wayback Machine, The St. Petersburg Times, 8 September 2000
- ^ Information on criminal case #22025 concerning the kidnapping of Alikhadzhiyev R.Sh. (copy), Council of Europe, 23 January 2001
- ^ "Газета.Ru - Zakayev saved by Mr Y". 5 June 2011. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
- ^ "Russian Federation: European Court of Human Rights finds Russia responsible yet again for enforced disappearance in Chechnya" (PDF). 5 July 2007.
- ^ "EU Court Rules Against Russia in Chechen's Disappearance". Voice of America. 27 October 2009. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
- ^ a b "5 июля 2007 г. Страсбургский Суд по правам человека вынес решение по делу Зуры Алихаджиевой против России (Alikhadzhieva v Russia, № 68007/01)". 20 November 2019. Archived from the original on 20 November 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
- ^ "Strasbourg Court Again Rules Against Russia in Chechen Case". Jamestown. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
External links
- Russia May Be Charged with the Abduction of Ichkerian Parliament Speaker Archived 2011-06-06 at the Wayback Machine, Kommersant, 21 December 2005
- Russia Found Guilty of Murder, Kommersant, 6 July 2007
- Russia 'ordered murder of Chechen moderate', The Daily Telegraph, 7 July 2007
This page was last edited on 21 April 2024, at 09:44