Chechen Ali Bataev released from deportation centre in Zurich

Ali Bataev, a native of Chechnya, who was facing deportation from Switzerland to his homeland, has been released from the deportation centre, human rights defenders have informed.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Swiss authorities had treated the stay in the country of Ali Bataev, a Chechen native, who had arrived from Ukraine, as illegal and decided to deport him to Russia. Bataev spent about two months on a hunger strike at the deportation centre in Zurich, declaring that he would be persecuted by Chechen authorities if deported. On October 15, it became known that Bataev was denied international protection because Swiss authorities treated Chechnya as a safe territory.

If Ali Bataev is deported, he will be subjected to persecution and torture in Chechnya, human rights defenders have stated, noting that European authorities are often prejudiced towards refugees from Chechnya. The Chechen Diaspora has noted that Bataev had left Russia, not wanting to participate in the special military operation (SMO) in Ukraine.

Ali Bataev is back at large, Lachin Mamishov, an activist of the human rights organization "European Peace House", has stated.

Let us remind you that Ali Bataev had lived for a long time in Ukraine, where he had a residence permit and got married to a Ukrainian woman. After the start of the SMO in Ukraine, he moved to Europe as a refugee. In September 2022, Swiss authorities detained him, treating his stay in the country as illegal.