Yassir al-Sudani ( ar, ياسر السوداني), (russian: Ясир аль-Судани), also known as Yasser Youssef Amarat or Abu Yassir, was a
Mujahid
''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term t ...
Emir
Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...
(commander) fighting in Chechnya. Most Russian language sources report he was a Jordanian citizen.
Rebel Activity
Reportedly an explosives expert who specialized in the preparation of suicide bombers, al-Sudani is said to have traveled to the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...
region in 2003, serving in the State Defense Committee - or Majilis al-Shura - of the
Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
The Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (; ce, Нохчийн Республик Ичкери, Nóxçiyn Respublik Içkeri; russian: Чеченская Республика Ичкерия; abbreviated as "ChRI" or "CRI") was a ''de facto'' state that ...
. Following the death of
Abu Hafs al-Urduni
Abu Hafs al-Urduni ( ar, أبو حفص الأردني; 1973 – November 26, 2006), also transliterated as Abu Hafs al-Urdani, was a Mujahid Emir (commander) fighting in Chechnya. He was killed in Dagestan on November 26, 2006.
Biography Early ...
in November 2006, al-Sudani was reportedly one of the candidates to succeed him as Emir of the Arab Mujahideen in Chechnya. The appointment eventually went to the Saudi-born militant known as Muhannad, but al-Sudani became leader of a branch of the foreign volunteers that at one time had previously been commanded by al-Urduni. Al-Sudani was allegedly involved in numerous attacks on Russian federal forces as well as local law enforcement officials, and was also singled out by Chechen President
Ramzan Kadyrov
Ramzan Akhmadovich Kadyrov ce, КъадаргӀеран Ахьмат-кӏант Рамзан, translit= (born 5 October 1976) is a Russian politician who currently serves as the Head of the Chechen Republic. He was formerly affiliated to the ...
as - along with Muhannad - being behind a spate of suicide attacks in Chechnya in the summer of 2009.
Death
Al-Sudani was killed in a special operation by Russian security forces in the mountainous Vedeno district of Chechnya on 8 June 2010. Members of the
Federal Security Service
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) RF; rus, Федеральная служба безопасности Российской Федерации (ФСБ России), Federal'naya sluzhba bezopasnosti Rossiyskoy Feder ...
(FSB),
Interior Ministry
An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs.
Lists of current ministries of internal affairs
Named "ministry"
* Ministry ...
(MVD), and local law enforcement officers from the Kurchaloi district had been conducting an operation in the southern mountains of Chechnya beginning on 8 May and code-named "Retribution;" its targets were allegedly Muhannad, al-Sudani and Chechen field commander
Khuseyn Gakayev
Khuseyn Vakhaevich Gakayev (), also known as Emir Mansur (not to be confused with Amir Mansur, or Arbi Yovmurzaev, the Chechen nationalist commander killed in 2010) Al-Sudani was among a group of Islamic radicals detected and then surrounded in a densely forested area on 8 June; following a series of clashes that lasted several hours, the bodies of eight militants were recovered. One of those slain was identified by his call-sign of "Forest Lion" and was known to be al-Sudani's top aide and someone that Ramzan Kadyrov claimed never left his side, leading to suspicion that the Sudanese commander had been among those killed. The following day an insurgent captured after the battle said that al-Sudani had been seriously wounded and shortly thereafter died; he also said that the militants had buried al-Sudani themselves, before leading Russian security forces to the site of his grave.