SVO member heads Dagestan's Ministry of Nationalities after accusations of war crimes in Ukraine

Temirlan Abutalimov, who was awarded the title Hero of Russia for his participation in military operations, has been appointed acting Minister for National Policy and Religious Affairs. In Ukraine, Abutalimov is accused of executing prisoners.

The appointment of 28-year-old Abutalimov as acting Minister for National Policy and Religious Affairs of Dagestan was announced by the head of the republic, Sergei Melikov, at a meeting today. 

Before his appointment, Abutalimov “studied the experience of public administration for more than a year” and “practiced in government bodies,” and completed an internship in the administration of the head of Dagestan under the personal mentorship of Melikov, the press service said in an official statement. 

Tamerlan Abutalimov received the title Hero of Russia from Putin in December 2023; a month before that, he was awarded the Order of Courage. He has been participating in military operations in Ukraine since September 2022 - “after the announcement of partial mobilization, he volunteered for the front,” - and before that he worked as an investigator in the Khasavyurt City Department of Internal Affairs, according to the biography of the soldier, published in the Spetsnaz Rossii newspaper.

Temirlan Abutalimov became a participant in the “Time of Heroes” program, designed to retrain participants in military operations as officials, in May 2024. At the same time, it became known about the execution of four Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered near the village of Rabotino in the Zaporizhia region. The official authorities of Ukraine declared Abutalimov involved in this crime.

The execution of the prisoners was filmed on video by a drone: as can be seen in the footage, four unarmed Ukrainian soldiers with their hands raised approach five armed fighters, surrendering, they force the Ukrainians to lie face down on the ground and shoot them point-blank.

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry stated that it had identified the participants in the execution by intercepting radio messages, in one of which the commander directly ordered his subordinates to shoot the prisoners. All five soldiers, whose details the department provided, belonged, according to Ukrainian intelligence services, to an assault group of a unit permanently stationed in Shali (Chechnya). Among them was the commander of the assault company, Senior Lieutenant Temirlan Abutalimov.

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