"Novaya Gazeta" denied threats to Milashina's life in Chechnya

As stated by "Novaya Gazeta", its reporter Elena Milashina, the author of the materials about the impending marriage of the head of the Nozhai-Yurt ROVD to a 17-year-old girl, has left Chechnya because of her urgent need to be in Moscow, not because of "threats to her life."

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on April 30 Elena Milashina reported that Nazhud Guchigov, the head of the above ROVD, threatened the relatives of the minor girl from the village of Baitarki demanding that the girl should marry him on the day of her 17^th birthday. On May 14 Olga Bobrova, a Milashina's colleague, said that Elena had left Chechnya after learning that she was looked for by Chechen power agents.

The editorial board of "Novaya Gazeta" does not confirm that Elena Milashina left Chechnya on May 14 "because of a threat to her life." Milashina left the republic because of the urgent need to be in Moscow, said the article posted on May 14 on the website of the newspaper and entitled "Editorial board of 'Novaya Gazeta' refutes Elena Milashina's departure from Chechnya because of threat to her life".

The newspaper has emphasized that the details of Elena's trip to Chechnya, related to preparation of materials about the marriage of Nazhud Guchigov, the head of the Nozhai-Yurt ROVD, to the 17-year-old Louise (Kheda) Goylabieva will be published, when Milashina returns to the office of the newspaper.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.