Head of ID of ICRF for Kabardino-Balkaria equates "Black Hawks" to militants

The "Chornye Yastreby" (Black Hawks) are "same criminals as the bandit underground", whatever principles they are guided by. This was stated today by Valery Ustov, head of the Investigatory Department (ID) of the Investigatory Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) for Kabardino-Balkaria, at a press conference in Nalchik.

Mr Ustov said that the "Black Hawks" is a virtual project, possibly invented by someone to intimidate militants and their supporters. He did not rule out that if the "Hawks" really existed, then, persons, whose families had suffered from hands of terrorists, might be involved in this project. However, according to his story, the ID has no facts about their real activities.

"Two murders were committed - in Nalchik and Zayukovo, where casualties were ordinary citizens. Criminal cases were initiated on these facts under Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. When established, the criminals will be punished in accordance with the law," said Valery Ustov, who did not exclude that the "Black Hawks" could be involved in the killings.

According to his version, both casualties had been active worshipers; however, there was no record of their any illegal activities.

He also refuted the rumours spread through the Internet about possible involvement of special agencies to appearance of the "Hawks".

"The war was on in Chechnya for so many years; however, no similar organizations appeared there," said Mr Ustov.

Today, the topic of "Black Hawks" is the most resonant in the republic, but dangerous. Therefore, many experts, to whom the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent turned for comments, refused to speak. Only one of them agreed to talk on the topic on the condition of anonymity.

This expert believes that "Black Hawk" and militants are phenomena of the same order.

"The appearance of this sort of uncontrolled killers, who are easily interviewed by the television, indicates a serious degradation of the political elite. This is a direct evidence of the absence of any horizontal or vertical power. In the chronology of civilized development it returns the Russian society back into the 19th century, when America had Ku Klux Klan units, practicing the lynch law. The only difference is that American assassins wore white masks, while these ones are in black masks. Their methods are the same," said the source.

"The authors of the 'Black Hawks' project are setting our young people against each other. Whoever had founded this movement, he was guided by acute hatred to our nation," said the expert.

According to his version, in fact, the "Black Hawks" are no threat "for Islamist terrorists or for their ideology." However, they pose a serious threat to the Circassian national movement. Same as Islamic terrorists discredit Islam, the "Black Hawk" discredit the Adyg (Circassian) ethnic values that they are trying to hide behind.