Chechen authorities' attempt to refute kidnappings outrages Kadyrov's critics

Akhmed Dudaev, the Minister of Press and Information of Chechnya, has posted a story refuting the kidnappings of relatives of critics of Chechen authorities by showing a video with relatives of Khasan Khalitov and Akhmed Zakaev. In response, Khalitov has stated that it was a show staged by Chechen authorities, while he still has no information about the whereabouts of his relatives.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 7, Russian and international human rights organizations demanded from the Russian president to do everything possible to stop repressions in Chechnya, ensure an investigation of human rights violations committed by Chechen authorities and bring all those responsible to justice.

Minister Dudaev has treated the statements made by Ramzan Kadyrov's critics about mass kidnappings of their relatives living in Chechnya as disinformation. To prove his words, Dudaev posted videos with relatives of Khasan Khalitov and Akhmed Zakaev. In the first clip, two men say that they were doing well, and no one had committed any "illegal actions" against them.

In the video recorded on behalf of Akhmed Zakaev's relatives of (no information was reported about kidnapping of any of them in December 2021, – note of the "Caucasian Knot"), five men are sitting, one of them says something in the Chechen language.

Khasan Khalitov has treated the videos posted by Dudaev as a staged performance. "We understand very well that they can make any videos and any performances. My relatives are not at large. If they are at home, then they are kept in captivity there," the "Kavkaz.Realii"*** outlet quote Khasan as saying.

Akhmed Zakaev noted that the people whom Dudaev showed in his videos had been detained several months ago, but then released, by taking away their internal and foreign passports, he told the outlet. He was outraged by the fact that Dudaev showed his relatives to confirm his words. "After all, other people have been really kidnapped. Among those kidnapped in Chechnya there are women, children, even a pregnant woman with whom they do not know what they are doing," the "Kavkaz.Realii"*** has quoted him as saying.

***A fragment of a message is cited created and disseminated by a foreign media performing the functions of a foreign agent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 8, 2022 at 08:27 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.