The extension of Movlaev's arrest has been appealed amid international outcry.

An appeal has been filed against the extension of the extradition arrest of Mansur Movlaev, who faces torture in Chechnya if extradited to Russian authorities. The Human Rights Committee and the UN Special Rapporteur called for the extradition of the Chechen native to be suspended.

As reported by the Caucasian Knot, on May 8, an Almaty court extended Mansur Movlaev's extradition arrest by two months, until July. Neither Movlaev nor his lawyers were present at the hearing.

The defense has appealed the decision to extend Mansur Movlaev's detention, Elena Zhigalenok, the Chechen native's lawyer, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on May 12.

"Such complaints are processed quickly. It is possible that a decision on it will be made as early as Friday [May 15]," she said.

According to the lawyer, Movlaev has no complaints about the conditions of his detention or pressure from security forces. "He's living in normal conditions. He's being looked after, so to speak," Zhigalenok explained.

The UN Special Rapporteur also spoke in Movlaev's defense.

In addition to the UN Human Rights Committee, the UN Special Rapporteur on Russia, Mariana Katsarova, also called for Movlaev's non-extradition until his case is considered by the committee, the lawyer said. "She prepared a report in which she noted that he should not be extradited due to the risk of torture," she noted.

However, as Elena Zhigalenok noted, the UN Committee's ruling on interim measures only mentioned a ban on extradition, but said nothing about Movlaev being released from custody until his case is considered. "It simply states 'take measures to prevent extradition,' but whether he will be released or detained was not mentioned," the lawyer said.

However, according to her, the Kazakh authorities are advocating for Mansur Movlaev's extradition until the UN Committee's decision. "The Prosecutor General's Office issued a ruling for his deportation. We appealed it to the Supreme Court, but the court simply suspended the hearing until a decision was made on granting Movlaev refugee status," said Zhigalenok.

An appeal was filed against the administrative court's ruling, which upheld the Migration Service's decision in December 2025, with the appellate court, noted Elena Zhigalenok. "The review process there usually takes two to three months. We will most likely receive a refusal there as well, and after that, the denial of asylum will take effect. "However, there is still a cassation court, and the prosecutor's office has stated that it is prepared to await its decision," she said. According to the lawyer, only international pressure in support of Mansur Movlaev can change the situation.

Movlaev's extradition threatens him with torture in Chechnya

As a reminder, in May 2025, Mansur Movlaev, who had been placed on the wanted list by the Shali District Department of Chechnya, was detained in Kazakhstan and placed under extradition arrest. On May 21, he received asylum seeker status, granting him temporary protection from being sent to Russia. Movlaev's lawyers have assured that a secret extradition is out of the question.

If extradited, Mansur Movlaev will be delivered to Chechnya, which is in the Chechen authorities' interest, human rights activists have stated. Extradition to Russia would risk Movlaev's torture and extrajudicial execution, Chechen activists have previously stated.

He will be subjected to torture, and there will be no fair trial.

Human rights activist Oleg Orlov (included in the register of foreign agents) expressed a similar opinion. "There is no reason to doubt that he will be tortured and that there will be no fair trial. Therefore, we cannot allow Movlaev to be extradited to Russia," he told the Caucasian Knot in January.

Mansur Movlaev fled to Asia from Kadyrov's men

Movlaev was born in 1995 in Shali. He told his lawyers that while studying at university, he helped the Chechen opposition movement "Adat" (an organization designated as extremist and banned in Russia) with information about people abducted by Kadyrov's men. "He was persecuted for this active position," his lawyer, Rena Kerimova, told Kursiv Media.

In 2022, Movlaev was detained by security forces in Chechnya and held in an illegal prison. After escaping, he managed to reach Kyrgyzstan in January 2023. In August 2023, security forces in Kyrgyzstan detained Movlaev, who was wanted in Russia for financing extremist activity. A court in Bishkek sentenced Movlaev to six months in prison and subsequent deportation from the country. On November 20, 2023, Movlaev was released, but the decision to deport him remained in effect, and he voluntarily left Kyrgyzstan to avoid being sent home.

In October 2024, Mansur Movlaev reported the kidnapping of his relatives by security forces in Chechnya. "Two of my brothers, Zelimkhan and Khamzat, have been kidnapped. They are being held and tortured, in an attempt to put pressure on me," he said in a published video.

Caucasian Knot publishes materials about human rights violations in Chechnya, Kadyrov's attacks on the opposition, and his fight against dissent in the republic on the topic page "Dissent in Chechnya".