Chechnya: search of Sulim Yamadaev, former battalion "Vostok" commander, cancelled

Chechen investigatory bodies have cancelled the federal search of Sulim Yamadaev, former commander of the "Vostok" (East) battalion of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division of the Ministry of Defence, reported today the official spokesman of the Investigatory Department of the Investigatory Committee at the Russian Prosecutor's Office for Chechnya.

We remind you that it has become known today that by the order of Anatoly Serdyukov, Russian Minister of Defence, Sulim Yamadaev was dismissed from service.

The search was stopped, since the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Chechnya has established the whereabouts of Yamadaev, the RIA "Novosti" reports. According to investigatory bodies, Sulim Yamadaev is now in Moscow.

Earlier, the "Caucasian Knot" reported that Sulim Yamadaev, who early in August was announced into federal search for murdering a Chechen entrepreneur, was still in command of the "Vostok" battalion, which was at war in Georgia and South Ossetia.

The "Polit.ru" supposes that under mediation of federal authorities an armistice was reached between Ramzan Kadyrov and Yamadaev, where one of the conditions was Yamadaev's dismissal from military service.

Alexander Cherkasov, a member of the Board of the Human Rights Centre "Memorial", has noted: "Now we know from evidences of eyewitnesses that during the war in Georgia the fighters of the "Vostok" battalion were humanely treating the prisoners of war. As far as I understand, the Chechen battalion didn't take part in pogroms, and everything incriminated to Yamadaev refers to the past."

We remind you that according to GZT.ru, on August 12 the "Vostok" battalion, which was in Gori in Georgia, under direct command of Sulim Yamadaev participated in storming Kvemo-Nikozi village. Sources in Chechnya have confirmed this information.

Let us note here that special-purpose battalions "Vostok" and "Zapad" (West) of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Russian General Staff (known as GRU), comprising residents of Chechnya, suffered very serious losses in the course of the warfare in the Georgian-South-Ossetian conflict zone. There are no precise data about the number of the lost Chechen militaries, however, recently only in one of the districts of Chechnya eight special fighters were buried.