The Separate Special Purpose Battalion of the Ministry of Defense of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria is a military commando formation of Chechen volunteers, functioning as part of the

International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine The International Legion of Territorial Defence of Ukraine, uk, Інтернаціональний легіон територіальної оборони України, Internatsionalnyi lehion terytorialnoi oborony Ukrainy or the Ukrainian Fo ...

. It is one of several Chechen armed volunteer formations on the side of Ukraine It was created by

Akhmed Zakayev Akhmed Halidovich Zakayev ( ce, Заки Хьалид кlант Ахьмад, Zaki Halid-khant Ahmad; russian: Ахмед Халидович Закаев, Akhmed Khalidovich Zakayev; born 26 April 1959) is a former Deputy Prime Minister and Pri ...

on July 29, 2022, on the basis of a Chechen formation that has been fighting on the side of the

Armed Forces of Ukraine , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly known ...

since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

History

On July 29, 2022, at a meeting with the leaders of the Chechen volunteers in Kyiv,

announced the creation of a new Chechen armed formation on the side of the

armed forces of Ukraine , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly known ...

. This formation was named OBON (Separate Special Purpose Battalion) and included in the

. According to Zakayev himself, as the battalion becomes bigger, it will be transformed into a "Separate Special Purpose Brigade" as part of the International Legion. The unit is subordinate to the Ministry of Defense of the government of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria abroad, headed by

. It includes fighters from among the representatives of the Chechen nationality who serve in the Ukrainian army, as well as volunteers from the

Chechen diaspora The Chechen diaspora ( ce, Нохчийн диаспора) is a term used to collectively describe the communities of Chechen people who live outside of Chechnya; this includes Chechens who live in other parts of Russia. There are also significant ...

in Europe and abroad. The officer of the Ukrainian army Khadzhi-Murat Zumsoevsky who served for several years in the ranks of the

was appointed as the commander of the battalion. His deputy is Khavazhi Amaev, a participant in the second Russian-Chechen war and civil war in Syria.

Participation in the Russo-Ukrainian war

In the beginning of August, the battalion took part in the battles in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. In August–September 2022, the battalion has taken part in the Ukrainian counteroffensive of the southern regions.

Commanders

Rustam Azhiev Rustam Magomedovich Azhiev (), also known by his nom-de-guerre ( kunya) Abdul Hakim Shishani, is deputy commander-in-chief of the Chechen battalion OBON (part of the Ichkerian armed forces-in-exile) fighting on the Ukrainian side in the Russ ...

– colonel of the CRI Armed Forces * Hadji-Murad Zumso – Battalion commander * Khavazhi Amaev – Deputy battalion commander * Hussein Dzhambetov – Commander of a group in the battalion * Muslim Sadaev – Captain of the CRI Armed Forces

References

{{Russian intervention in Ukraine Regiments of the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine Battalions of Ukraine Chechen armies in exile

History

Participation in the Russo-Ukrainian war

Commanders

See also

References