Chechen MIA: report of Russia's Deputy Prosecutor General on militants' actions is non-objective

Law enforcement bodies of the Chechen Republic refute the data presented yesterday by Ivan Sydoruk, Deputy Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, about the activities of illegal armed formations (IAFs) in the region. According to the Chechen Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), not a single terror act was committed in the first nine months of this year in the territory of the republic.

The Chechen MIA's spokesman has treated the data on the situation in Northern Caucasus in general and in Chechnya in particular, presented in Mr Sydoruk's reports, as "absolutely baseless" and "biased". Last Monday, on October 25, when speaking at the expanded sitting an enlarged meeting of the Committee on Legal and Judicial Affairs of the Council of the Federation, the Deputy Prosecutor General stated that this year a total of 352 terrorist crimes have been registered in Northern Caucasus; of them 254 crimes were committed in Chechnya.

"The data presented by Deputy Prosecutor General Ivan Sydoruk raise only one feeling - surprise. The source of the figures and other data about the situation in our republic is totally unclear. In the nine months of this year, not a single terror act was committed in our republic. Since the start of the year, power agents have revealed all in all ten cases of helping to terrorist activities. Also, out of 243 cases of organizing or participating in IAFs, revealed by law enforcers, 160 refer to past years, and only 83 cases - to this year," said the source of the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"Also, the fact that Ivan Sydoruk found the work of law enforcement bodies in the region unsatisfactory is causing nothing but surprise and indignation. When the workers of the Chechen MIA have not admitted a single terror act in their territory and liquidated 75 bandits, it's sooner an indicator of their professionalism and activity than vice versa, as Mr Sydoruk asserts," the source said.

However, according to local observers, the report of the Russia's Deputy Prosecutor General Ivan Sydoruk deserves attention and may be more realistic than the reports of local authorities and power agencies about their victories over the armed underground.

"I don't rule out that Ivan Sydoruk's report has some political context, since the main accent was made on the situation in the Chechen Republic. The emphasis is made on the fact that militants' activity in Chechnya is much higher than in other regions of Northern Caucasus, although local authorities are constantly reporting about virtually complete liquidation of the armed underground and establishment of peace and stability in the republic," one of the experts said.

"It is clear that the two recent resonant attacks of separatists on Tsentoroi and Grozny, when they openly attacked two heavily fortified objects, were clearly not in favour of Ramzan Kadyrov. It's quite likely that we have here some pre-planned action aimed at undermining the Kremlin's credibility and confidence in the President of Chechnya. It may seem strange, but interests of certain political groups in Moscow and of rebels in Chechnya coincide in some unimaginable manner. The rumours have been long circulated that this autumn Ramzan Kadyrov may be dismissed and replaced by some other figure. I do not exclude this course of events," said his colleague, a local NGO leader, who preferred to remain anonymous.

"To dismiss Kadyrov now means to address the issue of numerous law enforcement structures that he personally controls. That is, to eliminate Kadyrov means eliminating almost all the republic's power agencies; and to eliminate them means eliminating Kadyrov," said the public activist.