On December 11-17, 2017, six persons fell victim to armed conflict in Northern Caucasus

During the week of December 11-17, 2017, at least six persons suffered in the armed conflict in Northern Caucasus. Of them, four were killed, and two others were injured. These are the results of the calculations run by the "Caucasian Knot" based on its own materials and information from other open sources.

All four killed persons were suspected members of the armed underground: three in Dagestan and one in Kabardino-Balkaria.

Special and counterterrorist operations

On December 15, in the Urvan District of Kabardino-Balkaria, policemen tried to stop a car on the outskirts of the Urvan village and came under the fire opened by people from the car. An attacker tried to escape and threw a grenade to the law enforcers. As a result, two special troop's fighters got slight concussions. At 6:10 p.m. Moscow time, the counterterrorist operation (CTO) legal regime was introduced in a part of the Urvan District territory. During an armed clash, law enforcers killed the militant who attacked them. The killed suspect was identified as Aslan Urusov, a 29-year-old local resident, who supported the religious extremist ideology. At 9:20 a.m. on December 16, the CTO legal regime in the Urvan District of Kabardino-Balkaria was lifted.

At 3:45 p.m. Moscow time on December 16, the CTO legal regime was introduced within the administrative borders of the Gubden village in the Karabudakhkent District of Dagestan, and law enforcers were engaged in searches for militants. FSB special forces fighters blocked the house, where the militants were hiding. Tenants of the neighbouring houses were evacuated. The law enforcers postponed the assault because of the darkness and entered into a shootout with militants in the morning on December 17. During the following assault on the house, three militants were killed. According to the National Antiterrorist Committee (NAC), during the special operation in Gubden, Aligadji Khamutaev, the leader of the "Gubden" militant grouping, who was on the federal wanted list since February 2012, was killed. At the place of the special operation, law enforcers discovered firearms, ammunition and grenades, as well as an ID of a delegate from the assembly of the municipal formation "Karabudakhkent District." At 12:15 a.m. Moscow time on December 17, the CTO legal regime in the territory of the Gubden village in Karabudakhkent District was lifted.

Detentions

On December 15, in Makhachkala, law enforcers conducted a raid near the Salafi mosque located in Omarov Street. They searched mosque-goers who gathered for a Friday prayer. The raid involved about 30 law enforcers. According to eyewitnesses, the law enforcers were interested in searching the people with the appearance typical for practicing Muslims. The policemen detained two or three persons. The detainees have already been released, the Dagestani Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) reports.

Disappearances

On December 7, a schoolboy who left the village of Braguny for Gudermes disappeared. After the sixth lesson, he left the school and went to Gudermes to make a haircut. For the last time, the disappeared schoolboy was seen in a minivan, reported his family members. Since his disappearance, the boy several times checked his WhatsApp, but his family members failed to contact him, reported a sister of the disappeared schoolboy. On December 7, the relatives filed a complained to the police station in Gudermes and on the other day, they appealed to the Prosecutor's Office. The family members of the disappeared schoolboy suggest law enforcers may be involved in his disappearance, since about three years ago, his elder brother left for Syria and since then disappeared.