Second Chechen War crimes and terrorism
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Human rights violations Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hum ...
were committed by the warring sides during the second war in
Chechnya Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...
. Both Russian officials and Chechen rebels have been regularly and repeatedly accused of committing war crimes including
kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...
,
torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...
,
murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...
,
hostage taking A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or ref ...
,
looting Looting is the act of stealing, or the taking of goods by force, typically in the midst of a military, political, or other social crisis, such as war, natural disasters (where law and civil enforcement are temporarily ineffective), or rioting. ...
,
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...
,
decapitation Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...
, and assorted other breaches of the
law of war The law of war is the component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of warring parties (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territor ...
. International and
humanitarian organization An aid agency, also known as development charity, is an organization dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government, between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organization ...
s, including the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
and
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
, have criticized both sides of the conflict for blatant and sustained violations of
international humanitarian law International humanitarian law (IHL), also referred to as the laws of armed conflict, is the law that regulates the conduct of war (''jus in bello''). It is a branch of international law that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by prot ...
.


Crimes


Forced disappearances

Human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
campaigners estimate that since September 1999 - the start of the second Chechen conflict - as many as 5,000 people have disappeared and are feared dead. According to Amnesty International in 2005, Russian officials give about 2,000 as the official figure for "disappearances" since late 1999. * In March 2001
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...
(HRW) issued the report titled ''The "
Dirty War The Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina ( es, dictadura cívico-militar de Argentina, links=no) for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 a ...
" in Chechnya'
The "Dirty War" In Chechnya
which called the "disappearances" of
detainee Detention is the process whereby a state or private citizen lawfully holds a person by removing their freedom or liberty at that time. This can be due to (pending) criminal charges preferred against the individual pursuant to a prosecution or t ...
s in the custody of Russian federal forces in Chechnya a major human rights crisis that the
international community The international community is an imprecise phrase used in geopolitics and international relations to refer to a broad group of people and governments of the world. As a rhetorical term Aside from its use as a general descriptor, the term is ...
must address. * On March 31, 2003,
Akhmad Kadyrov Akhmad-Khadzhi Abdulkhamidovich Kadyrov ce, Къадири Ӏабдулхьамидан кӀант Ахьмад-Хьажи, Q̇adiri Jabdulẋamidan khant Aẋmad-Ẋaƶi (23 August 1951 – 9 May 2004) was a Russian politician and revolutionar ...
, the head of the pro-
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
administration of the
Chechen Republic Chechnya ( rus, Чечня́, Chechnyá, p=tɕɪtɕˈnʲa; ce, Нохчийчоь, Noxçiyçö), officially the Chechen Republic,; ce, Нохчийн Республика, Noxçiyn Respublika is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the ...
, has suggested that Russian federal forces are behind breaking into homes at night and abducting people. "People continue to go missing in Chechnya. They are taken away in the middle of the night. Their bodies are not found and they are never seen again," Kadyrov said to reporters in
Grozny Grozny ( rus, Грозный, p=ˈgroznɨj; ce, Соьлжа-ГӀала, translit=Sölƶa-Ġala), also spelled Groznyy, is the capital city of Chechnya, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the 2010 census, it had a pop ...
. "Through their crimes, they maintain tension in the republic, and their hands are stained with the blood of innocent people. The force is made up of
kidnapper In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...
s in armoured vehicles. They are a
death squad A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings or forced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in which they are ...
." * On February 25–26, 2006, Alvaro Gil-Robles, resigning Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, visited Chechnya, together with his successor,
Thomas Hammarberg Thomas Hammarberg (born 2 January 1942) is a Swedish diplomat and human rights defender. He held the post of Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights in Strasbourg from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2012. He succeeded the first Commissioner ...
; they criticized abductions, impunity and lack of security in Chechnya. On March 2, 2006, Chechen
ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
Nurdi Nukhadzhiyev stated the problem of
forced disappearances An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organiza ...
of people in Chechnya cannot be solved by local authorities, adding that a special commission has to be created at federal level. * On May 12, 2006, Dmitry Grushkin of the 'Memorial' human rights group told
Interfax Interfax (russian: Интерфакс) is a Russian news agency. The agency is owned by Interfax News Agency joint-stock company and is headquartered in Moscow. History As the first non-governmental channel of political and economic informatio ...
that at least 1,893 residents of Chechnya had been kidnapped since 2002; of those, he said, 653 were found alive, 186 were found dead, and 1,023 "disappeared". 'Memorial' monitors kidnappings for only 25-30 percent of Chechen territory. * On November 13, 2006, HRW published
briefing paper on torture in Chechnya
that it had prepared for the 37th session of the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
Committee Against Torture The Committee Against Torture (CAT) is a treaty body of human rights experts that monitors implementation of the United Nations Convention against Torture by state parties. The Committee is one of eight UN-linked human rights treaty bodies. Al ...
. The paper covered torture by personnel of the Second Operational Investigative Bureau ( ORB-2), torture by units under the effective command of Ramzan Kadyrov, torture in secret detention and continuing "disappearances." According to HRW, torture "in both official and secret detention facilities is widespread and systematic in Chechnya. Based on extensive research, HRW concluded in 2005 that forced disappearances in Chechnya are so widespread and systematic that they constitute
crime against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the c ...
."


Mass hostage takings


Moscow theater hostage crisis

On October 23, 2002, over 40 terrorists took more than 700 hostages prisoner at a Moscow theater. The
hostage A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or ref ...
-takers demanded an end to the Russian presence in Chechnya, and threatened to execute the hostages if their conditions were not met. The siege ended violently on October 26, when Russian troops were forced to storm the building after the detonation of some explosive devices inside. Many casualties resulted from the fact that unconscious victims' airways were blocked and sub-optimal care was given during the rescue. In particular, the failure of Russian authorities to equip their troops with
opioid Opioids are substances that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects. Medically they are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Other medical uses include suppression of diarrhea, replacement therapy for opioid us ...
antidote An antidote is a substance that can counteract a form of poisoning. The term ultimately derives from the Greek term φάρμακον ἀντίδοτον ''(pharmakon) antidoton'', "(medicine) given as a remedy". Antidotes for anticoagulants are s ...
s and their efforts to conceal the identity of the gas for days afterward hindered efforts to save the lives of the stricken hostages. On November 2
Shamil Basayev Shamil Salmanovich Basayev ( ce, Салман ВоӀ Шамиль ; russian: Шамиль Салманович Басаев; 14 January 1965 – 10 July 2006), also known by his kunya "Abu Idris", was a senior military commander in the Cheche ...
assumed responsibility for the attack and apologized to
Aslan Maskhadov Aslan (Khalid) Aliyevich Maskhadov (russian: Асла́н (Хали́д) Али́евич Масха́дов; ce, Масхадан Али-воӀ Аслан (Халид), Masxadan Ali-voj Aslan (Xalid); 21 September 1951 – 8 March 2005) was ...
for not informing him of the plan.


Beslan school siege

On September 1, 2004, a group of 32 heavily armed, masked men seized control of Middle School Number One and more than 1,000 hostages in
Beslan Beslan (russian: Бесла́н; os, Беслӕн, ''Beslæn'', ) is a town and the administrative center of Pravoberezhny District of the Republic of North Ossetia–Alania, Russia, located about north of the republic's capital Vladikavkaz, ...
,
North Ossetia North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...
. Most of the hostages were children aged from six to sixteen years old. Following a tense two-day standoff punctuated by occasional gunfire and explosions,
Alpha Group Spetsgruppa "A", also known as Alpha Group (a popular English name), or Alfa, whose official name is Directorate "A" of the FSB Special Purpose Center (TsSN FSB) (Russian: Спецназ ФСБ "Альфа"), is an elite stand-alone sub-unit o ...
of the FSB raided the building. The fighting lasted more than two hours; ultimately 331
civilian Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, b ...
s, 11 commandos and 31 hostage-takers died. Russian officials publicly linked Baseyev and Maskhadov to the attack. Baseyev claimed responsibility in a September 17 website publication; Maskhadov denounced the attacks and denied involvement. The carnage at Beslan and the outcry it caused has had an unexpected effect on the tactics employed by Chechen separatists and their allies.


Other hostage incidents

* March 15, 2001 - Three Chechens
hijacked Hijacking may refer to: Common usage Computing and technology * Bluejacking, the unsolicited transmission of data via Bluetooth * Brandjacking, the unauthorized use of a company's brand * Browser hijacking * Clickjacking (including ''like ...
a Russian
Tu-154 The Tupolev Tu-154 (russian: Tyполев Ту-154; NATO reporting name: "Careless") is a three-engined, medium-range, narrow-body airliner designed in the mid-1960s and manufactured by Tupolev. A workhorse of Soviet and (subsequently) Russian ...
aircraft with 174 people on board after it left Turkey; they forced it to land in
Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...
,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
. On March 16, Saudi commandos freed over 100 hostages, killing three people including a hijacker, a female
flight attendant A flight attendant, also known as steward/stewardess or air host/air hostess, is a member of the aircrew aboard commercial flights, many business jets and some government aircraft. Collectively called cabin crew, flight attendants are prima ...
and a Turkish passenger. A Russian diplomat in Saudi Arabia said the leader of the hijackers was a "highly-trained military officer who appears to know what he is doing." * April 22, 2001 - In Turkey pro-Chechen
gun A gun is a ranged weapon designed to use a shooting tube (gun barrel) to launch projectiles. The projectiles are typically solid, but can also be pressurized liquid (e.g. in water guns/cannons, spray guns for painting or pressure washing, p ...
men seized up to 100 hostages at a luxury hotel in
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
. The standoff lasted nearly 12 hours before the hostage-takers, armed with
automatic rifle An automatic rifle is a type of autoloading rifle that is capable of fully automatic fire. Automatic rifles are generally select-fire weapons capable of firing in semi-automatic and automatic firing modes (some automatic rifles are capable of ...
s, surrendered; police said they had encountered no resistance from the gunmen and there were no reports of anybody being injured. * October 29, 2004 - The
State Duma The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper house ...
hosted
Vladimir Ustinov Vladimir Vasilyevich Ustinov (russian: Владимир Васильевич Устинов; born 25 February 1953) is a Russian politician. He currently is the Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Southern Federal District. Until 2008, he was Russia's ...
, head of the
Prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the Civil law (legal system), civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the ...
General's Office, to discuss the Putin administration's
anti-terrorism Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...
strategy. As he explained it to the deputies, in future hostage-taking episodes the security agencies would have a formal statutory right to seize and detain the relatives of the suspected hostage-takers. The government would then let the terrorists know that it will do to these "counter-hostages" whatever the terrorists do to their own hostages. Meanwhile, the practice of taking civilians hostages exists among the officers of Russian and local security agencies in Chechnya. On March 1, 2004, officers of security agencies seized more than 30 relatives of former Ichkerian
defence minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
Magomed Khambiyev, including women, in the Khambiyev family's native village of Benoy in Chechnya's
Nozhay-Yurtovsky District Nozhay-Yurtovsky District (russian: Ножа́й-Ю́ртовский райо́н; ce, Нажи-Йуьртан кӀошт, ''Naƶi-Yürtan khoşt'') is an administrativeDecree #500 and municipalLaw #11-RZ district (raion), one of the fifteen in ...
. Magomed Khambiyev got an ultimatum to lay down his arms in exchange for the lives of his relatives; he did it, giving himself up to the authorities in a few days. * June 3, 2006 - Russian diplomats in Iraq were seized when their convoy was waylaid by the Mujahedeen Shura Council. One was shot during the kidnapping; three others were later executed. The group hoped to pressure Russia into allowing Chechnya to secede and become an Islamic
theocracy Theocracy is a form of government in which one or more deity, deities are recognized as supreme ruling authorities, giving divine guidance to human intermediaries who manage the government's daily affairs. Etymology The word theocracy origina ...
.


Massacres


Indiscriminate attacks

* On October 5, 1999, a bus filled with
refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.
s was reportedly hit by a Russian tank shell, killing as many as 40 civilians and wounding several others. * On October 7, 1999, federal forces carried out a cluster bomb attack on the village of Elistanzhy in
Vedensky District Vedensky District (russian: Веде́нский райо́н; ce, Веданан кӏошт, ''Vedanan khoşt'') is an administrativeDecree #500 and municipalLaw #14-RZ district (raion), one of the fifteen in the Chechen Republic, Russia. It is ...
. Within several minutes 27 people were killed; among them only eight were men of "fighting age", meaning aged 14 to 60. In the next two weeks, 21 more died of their wounds. * On October 21, 1999, a series of Russian
ballistic missile A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are guided only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles stay within the ...
strikes on central Grozny killed at least 137 people, mostly civilians, and injured hundreds. The missiles hit the city's main
marketplace A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...
, a
maternity ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gestati ...
hospital and a
mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
. * On October 24, 1999, seven children were killed and 14 maimed by a Russian tank attack in
Novy Sharoy Novy Sharoy (russian: Новый Шарой, ce, Керла-Шара, ''Kerla-Şara'') is a rural locality (a '' selo'') in Achkhoy-Martanovsky District, Chechnya. Administrative and municipal status Municipally, Novy Sharoy is incorporated as ...
; an adult man was also killed. * On October 29, 1999, the
Russian Air Force " Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , bat ...
carried out a rocket attack on a large convoy of refugees who were using a "safe exit" route. Casualties were estimated at 50-100, among them several
Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
workers, two journalists and many women and children. * On February 4, 2000, in an attempt to stop the Chechen retreat, Russian forces bombed the village of Katyr-Yurt, then a civilian convoy under
white flag White flags have had different meanings throughout history and depending on the locale. Contemporary use The white flag is an internationally recognized protective sign of truce or ceasefire, and for negotiation. It is also used to symbolize ...
s, killing at least 170 civilians, while many more were injured. * On February 9, 2000, a Russian tactical missile hit a crowd of people who had come to the local administration building in Shali, a town declared to be one of the "safe areas", to collect their pensions. The missile is estimated to have killed some 150 civilians, and was followed by an attack by combat helicopters causing further casualties. The Russian attack, which happened without any warning, was a response to infiltration of the town by a group of Chechen fighters who suffered few casualties.


Documented mass killings

*On December 3, 1999, at least 40 people fleeing the besieged Grozny were shot and killed by Russian troops, leaving only seven wounded survivors. *In early December 1999, Russian troops under the command of General
Vladimir Shamanov Vladimir Anatolyevich Shamanov (russian: Владимир Анатольевич Шаманов, born 15 February 1957) is a retired Colonel General of the Russian Armed Forces who was Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Airborne Troops (VDV) from M ...
killed up to 41 civilians during a two-week drunken rampage in the village of Alkhan-Yurt, near Grozny. *In several incidents during December 1999 and January 2000 in the Staropromyslovski district of Grozny, Russian troops killed at least 50 unarmed civilians, mostly elderly men and women. *A particularly brutal
massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
was carried out on February 5, 2000 in the suburb of Erik Texidor, where suspected members of
OMON OMON (russian: ОМОН – Отряд Мобильный Особого Назначения , translit = Otryad Mobil'nyy Osobogo Naznacheniya , translation = Special Purpose Mobile Unit, , previously ru , Отряд Милиции Осо ...
, a special purpose police unit from
St Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
and contract soldiers summarily executed at least 60 civilians. *Following the March 2000
Battle of Komsomolskoye The Battle of Komsomolskoye took place in March 2000 between Russian federal forces and Chechen separatists in the Chechen village of Komsomolskoye (Saadi-Kotar), Chechnya. It was the largest Russian victory during the Second Chechen War. Seve ...
about 70 Chechen combatants who were taken prisoner were officially amnestied, but almost all of them are believed to have been murdered in captivity. From, 1999-2004, the Chernokozovo detention center operated as a
filtration Filtration is a physical separation process that separates solid matter and fluid from a mixture using a ''filter medium'' that has a complex structure through which only the fluid can pass. Solid particles that cannot pass through the filter ...
and torture camp, and
human rights abuses Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hum ...
were documented in the facility.


Rebel bombings

*September 6–14, 1999 - a series of nighttime explosions in apartment buildings using
hexogen RDX (abbreviation of "Research Department eXplosive") or hexogen, among other names, is an organic compound with the formula (O2N2CH2)3. It is a white solid without smell or taste, widely used as an explosive. Chemically, it is classified as a n ...
(RDX) killed 307 and injured 1,700 people. Four buildings in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, Buinaksk and Volgodonsk were destroyed. *May 9, 2002 - An explosion of a Russian-made
anti-personnel mine Anti-personnel mines are a form of mine designed for use against humans, as opposed to anti-tank mines, which are designed for use against vehicles. Anti-personnel mines may be classified into blast mines or fragmentation mines; the latter may ...
in the
Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...
i town of
Kaspiysk Kaspiysk (russian: Каспи́йск; lbe, Ккасппи; av, Каспиялъухъ) is a city in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea, southeast of Makhachkala. The 2010 Russian census recorded the city as being the f ...
killed 45 and wounded some 175 soldiers and civilian bystanders during a military
parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...
. A Dagestani pro-Chechen group blamed for an attack had previously killed seven Russian soldiers on January 18, 2001, in the Dagestani capital,
Makhachkala Makhachkala ( rus, Махачкала, , məxətɕkɐˈla, links=yes),; av, Махӏачхъала, Maħaçqala; ce, ХӀинжа-ГӀала, Hinƶa-Ġala; az, Маһачгала, Mahaçqala; nog, Махачкала; lbe, Махачкъала; ...
. * June 12, 2005 - A bomb planted by Russian
nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
extremists, said to be
veterans A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...
of the Chechen wars belonging to the
Russian National Unity Russian National Unity (RNU; transcribed Russkoe natsionalnoe edinstvo RNE) or All-Russian civic patriotic movement "Russian National Unity" (russian: Всероссийское общественное патриотическое движен ...
group, derailed the Grozny-Moscow passenger train some 150 kilometers south of the Russian capital. Dozens of people were injured, but only eight hospitalized. On May 30, 2006, suspects Vladimir Vlasov and Mikhail Klevachyov were charged with terrorism and attempting to commit murder motivated by ethnic or religious hatred.


Suicide bombings

Between June 2000 and September 2004, Chechen insurgents added
suicide attack A suicide attack is any violent Strike (attack), attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has suicide, accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have oc ...
s to their weaponry. During this period there were 23 Chechen related suicide attacks in and outside Chechnya, targeting both military and civilian targets, the profiles of the
suicide bomber A suicide attack is any violent Strike (attack), attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has suicide, accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have oc ...
s have varied just as much as the circumstances surrounding the bombings. Although only six of the attacks were directed against civilians, these attacks have drawn the lion's share of the publicity generated by Chechen suicide tactics. *July 5, 2003 - 19-year-old Zulichan Elichadzjijeva blew herself up outside a rock festival at the
Tushino Tushino ( rus, Тушино, p=ˈtuʂɨnə) is a former village and town to the north of Moscow, which has been part of the city's area since 1960. Between 1939 and 1960, Tushino was classed as a separate town. The Skhodnya River flows across the ...
airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...
near
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
. Her bomb did not detonate as expected. 15 minutes later, only a few meters from the site of the first attack, 26-year-old
Zinaida Alijeva Zenaida (Greek name meaning "Life of Zeus.") Zenaide (Italian), Zénaïde ( French), or Zinaida (russian: Зинаида).
detonated her explosives and killed 11 people instantly. Four more died in hospital. For many observers, the Tushino attacks appeared out of place. *December 5–10, 2003 - A
shrapnel Shrapnel may refer to: Military * Shrapnel shell, explosive artillery munitions, generally for anti-personnel use * Shrapnel (fragment), a hard loose material Popular culture * ''Shrapnel'' (Radical Comics) * ''Shrapnel'', a game by Adam C ...
-filled bomb which was believed to be strapped to a lone male suicide attacker ripped apart a
commuter train Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are consi ...
near Chechnya, killing 46 people and wounding nearly 200. The explosion occurred during a busy morning
rush hour A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice every weekday: on ...
when the train was packed with many students and workers; it ripped the side of the train open as it approached a station near
Yessentuki Yessentuki ( rus, Ессентуки́, p=jɪsɪntʊˈkʲiˑ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Stavropol Krai, Russia, located in the shadow of Mount Elbrus at the base of the Caucasus Mountains. The city serves as a railway ...
, 750 miles south of Moscow. Only five days later Red Square Bombing, another blast shook Russia—this time five people were killed and 44 injured in Red Square in the very heart of Moscow. Shamil Basayev later claimed responsibility for organising the December 2003 attacks. *February 6, 2004 - A bomb ripped through a Moscow Rapid transit, metro car during the morning rush hour, February 2004 Moscow metro bombing, killing 40 people and wounding 134. A previously unknown Chechen rebel group claimed responsibility for the bombing; the claim came from a group calling itself ''Gazoton Murdash'', and was signed by Lom-Ali ("Ali the Lion"). According to the statement, the group launched the attack to mark the fourth anniversary of the killing of scores of Chechen civilians by Russian soldiers who took control of the Chechen capital Grozny. * August 27, 2004 - 123 people were killed by a female suicide bomber in the Russian aircraft bombings of August 2004. Basayev again claimed responsibility.


Terrorist raids

During the Guerrilla phase of the Second Chechen War (2007), Insurgency phase of Second Chechen War, numerous raids and terrorist attacks were carried out by the jihadists. These include the 2004 Nalchik raid, 2004 Avtury raid, 2004 Nazran raid, 2004 Grozny raid, and the 2005 Nalchik raid. These attacks constitute as terrorism because they were attacks and armed incursions on infrastructure, civilian areas, civilians, government buildings, Russian government, government officials, on Police of Russia, law enforcement, and Main Directorate for Traffic Safety, unarmed traffic patrol officers (ДПС), and also often included hostage taking and the usage of civilians as human shields.


Legal proceedings


Trial in Russia


Trials of Chechen separatists

Since the Russian authorities do not treat the war as an armed conflict and enemies as combatants, the Chechen separatists are invariably described by the Russian government as terrorists or bandits. Captured extremists are routinely tried for such articles of the Russian criminal code as illegal weapons possession, "forming and participating in illegal armed groups," and banditry. This strips detainees of key rights and protection under the Geneva Conventions, Geneva Convention rules of war, including the right to be released at the end of the conflict and not to be held criminally liable for lawful combat. Participation in combat is treated as murder or attempted murder and terrorism, making little if any distinction with incidents of actual murders and terrorism. * One of the earliest war crimes trials to be held was that of Salman Raduyev, a notorious ex-field commander for the rebel Chechen forces. Raduyev was convicted in December 2001 of terrorism and murder charges and sentenced to life imprisonment. He died in a Russian prison colony a year later. * On February 21, 2001, a Chechen field commander Salautdin Temirbulatov was sentenced to life in prison for murdering four Russian contract soldiers whose execution in 1996 was filmed on video tape. When Russia invaded Chechnya for the second time in September 1999, the video became a powerful weapon in the Kremlin's propaganda war, as it was shown to soldiers preparing for active service in the war-torn republic. Temirbulatov was also accused of terrorism and abducting Russian special unit servicemen taken prisoner during their raid into Chechnya in 1997. * On May 26, 2006, Nur-Pashi Kulayev was jailed for life for his part in the Beslan school hostage crisis.


Trials of Russian servicemen

The cases of a Russian servicemen being tried for war crimes are few and far between, no one has been charged with mistreatment or the murder of captured enemy fighters. Several servicemen have been accused and even convicted of a crimes against civilians: * On July 25, 2003, after a series of trials and retrials, Russian tank unit commander Colonel, Col. Yuri Budanov was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the March 2000 Kidnapping, abduction and murder of a Chechen woman, Elza Kungaeva. According to the newspaper ''Novye Izvestia'' Budanov mysteriously disappeared: he had left the prison colony in Dimitrovgrad, Russia, Dmitrovgrad but he did not arrive at his destination, a prison colony in Ulyanovsk Oblast. * On April 29, 2004, a Russian court in Rostov-on-Don acquitted four GRU special forces unit officers of the fatal shooting of six Chechen civilians, including a disabled woman. In the incident in January 2000, Captain (land and air), Captain Eduard Ulman's unit killed a civilian and subsequently extrajudicially executed five more with Suppressor, silenced weapons; the commandos then burned the bodies in the victims' vehicle. They were found not guilty in a retrial on May 19, 2005. Although the four admitted the killings, the court ruled that their actions were not punishable as they had been following orders. The acquittals of Cpt. Ulman and his three subordinates sparked a public outrage in Chechnya, where rights advocates and many Chechens say Russian forces act with impunity. During the third court hearing Ulman and the two officers mysteriously disappeared. * On March 29, 2005, a court in Grozny found Lieutenant Sergey Lapin (police officer), Sergey Lapin (a police officer) "Kadet" and a member of the Khanty–Mansi OMON, guilty of torturing the "disappeared" Chechen civilian Zelimkhan Murdalov in January 2001, and sentenced him to 11 years imprisonment. * On October 27, 2005, Mukhadi Aziyev, a company commander of the Vostok (East) Spetsnaz GRU unit, was convicted of "exceeding official authority", and given a three-year suspended sentence regarding the June 2005 Borozdinovskaya operation resulting in the death or disappearance of 12 ethnic Caucasian Avars, Avar civilians on Chechnya's border with
Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...
. * On April 5, 2006, Alexey Krivoshonok, a Russian serviceman, accused of killing three Chechen civilians at a roadblock in November 2005, admitted his guilt in his final plea. Next day, Krivoshonok, a contract soldier since 1995 whose rank was not disclosed, was sentenced to 18 years in prison for violent murder while under a state of alcohol (drug), alcoholic and narcotic Substance intoxication, intoxication. * On May 15, 2006, the Grozny Garrison Military Circuit Court completed the trial of contract soldier, Private (rank), Private Pavel Zinchuk. He was sentenced to seven years in a general penal colony for shooting and wounding from "hooliganism, hooligan motives" three civilian persons in the village of Staraya Sunzha near Grozny. * On December 27, 2007, Lt. Sergei Arakcheyev and Lt. Yevgeny Khudyakov were convicted by a Rostov-on-Don military court of the January 2003 of the killing of three local construction workers at a checkpoint in Chechnya and sentenced to 15 and 17 years in prison, respectively. According to court papers, Khudyakov and Arakcheyev forced the victims out of their truck, ordered them to lie on the ground and shot them dead; the bodies were doused in fuel and set on fire. Khudyakov failed to show up for the verdict and the court said police would soon start a nationwide search for him.


European Court of Human Rights

In October 2004, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) agreed to try cases brought by Chechen civilians against the Russian government. As of November 2007, 23 cases were decided by the Court. The cases include: * The first trial concluded in February 2005. The Court ruled that the Russian government violated several articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, including a clause on the protection of property, a guarantee of the right to life, and a ban on
torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...
and inhumane or degrading treatment, and ordered the Russian government to pay Damages, compensation to the six plaintiffs in the case. The cases concerned the Russian federal forces' Indiscriminate attack, indiscriminate strategic bombing, aerial bombing of a civilian convoy of refugees fleeing
Grozny Grozny ( rus, Грозный, p=ˈgroznɨj; ce, Соьлжа-ГӀала, translit=Sölƶa-Ġala), also spelled Groznyy, is the capital city of Chechnya, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the 2010 census, it had a pop ...
in October 1999; the "disappearance" and subsequent extrajudicial execution of five individuals in Grozny in January 2000; and the indiscriminate aerial and artillery bombardment of the village of Katyr-Yurt in February 2000. The compensation has not been paid and NGOs claim that the applicants to the court have experienced persecution, including murders and disappearance. * In summer 2006 the ECHR decided the first cases concerning forced disappearances from Chechnya; more than 100 disappearance cases related to Chechnya were pending in the court. The cases included one where the court ordered Russia to pay 35,000 euros to the mother of Khadzhi-Murat Yandiyev for violating her son's "right to life" as well as failing "to conduct an effective investigation" into his February 2000 disappearance. Key evidence in the case, according to court documents, was video footage filmed by a reporter for NTV Russia, NTV and CNN television showing an army officer, later identified by CNN reporters as Colonel-General Alexander Baranov (general), Alexander Baranov, ordering soldiers to "finish off" and "shoot" Yandiyev. Baranov has since been promoted and awarded a Hero of Russia medal and is now responsible for all Defense Ministry forces in the North Caucasus. * On October 12, 2006, the Court held the Russian Federation, Russian state responsible for the summary execution of the Estamirov family during the February 5, 2000 Novye Aldi massacre by OMON forces. "Russian and Chechen security forces should take this decision as a warning that the abuse and murder of innocent civilians cannot be met by impunity," said Europe and Central Asia director at
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...
. At least 11 other incidents of summary executions committed on the same day in the same region of Chechnya were pending before the Court. * On November 9, 2006, the Court ruled the Russian government complicit in the murder and abduction of three Chechen civilians, including a case on the disappearance and presumed death of two Chechens from the same family. The court sided with Marzet Imakayeva, a Chechen woman who fled Russia two years ago to seek Right of asylum, asylum in the United States. It also said that the way Imakayeva's complaints were dealt with by Russian authorities constituted "inhuman treatment." The bodies of Imakayeva family members have never been found. In the other case the abductee, the body of Nura Luluyeva turned up in a mass grave eight months later. * On January 8, 2007, the Court condemned Russia in the first torture case from Chechnya to be heard by the ECHR. In its Judgment (law), judgment, the Court stated that the applicants Adam and Arbi Chitayev had been held in unacknowledged detention, that they had been subjected to torture, and that the Russian authorities had not properly investigated their allegations.


See also

*Deportation of the Chechens and Ingush *International response to the Second Chechen War *Russian war crimes


References


External links


Human rights violations attributed to Russian forces
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...

List of terror attacks 2001-2004Cases from Chechnya pending before the European Court of Human Rights"As I was raped by the Chechens." Confession of a victim
{{Chechen wars Massacres in Russia Terrorist incidents of the Second Chechen War, Terrorism in Russia War crimes of the Second Chechen War,