French authorities ban Chechen native Gadaev from returning to country

The French authorities banned Magomed Gadaev, a deported Chechen native, from returning to the country and explained their decision by his suspected connections with a radical movement. The Magomed Gadaev’s defence lodged a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in connection with the fact that the French authorities ignored complaints about the threat to the Magomed Gadaev’s life.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on April 9, Magomed Gadaev, a 37-year-old native of Chechnya, was deported from France to Russia. A video was posted on Instagram in which Magomed Gadaev stated he had not been tortured. Social media users considered the video to be staged. The video increases fears for the Magomed Gadaev’s life, human rights defenders note.

Magomed Gadaev, who left Russia in 2010, is a witness in a criminal case instituted against Chechen law enforcers under Articles “Kidnapping” and “Exceeding Official Powers” of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which is still under investigation, the newspaper “Novaya Gazeta” reports. In Chechnya, Magomed Gadaev was kidnapped, but managed to go abroad. The native of Chechnya was deported from France because of a minor conflict with a policeman, reports Shamil Albakov, the chief of the press service for the NGO “Assembly of Chechens in Europe”.