Abukhadzhi Idrisovich Idrisov ( ce, Абухажи Идрисов, russian: Абухаджи Идрисович Идрисов; 17 May 1918 – 22 October 1983) was a Chechen

sniper A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

and machine-gunner in the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Throughout the war he killed a total of 349 enemy combatants for which he was awarded the title

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

just shortly before he was deported to the Kazakh SSR solely on the grounds of his Chechen ethnicity. He was only able to return to his native village in Chechnya in 1957 where he worked in agriculture after the Chechen nation was granted the right of return in the Khrushchev era.

Early life

Idrisov was born on 17 May 1918 in Berdikel, Mountain Republic (present-day Komsomolskoye, Chechenya) to a Chechen peasant family. He graduated from primary school and worked as a shepherd at the Sovetskaya Rossiya

collective farm Collective farming and communal farming are various types of, "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member ...

Military career

Idrisov was drafted into the Red Army in October 1939 and assigned to the 125th Rifle Division in the Baltic states. He received training as a machine-gunner and saw combat from the first day of the German-Soviet War during the defense against Operation Barbarossa. With the rest of his regiment he retreated Northeast. In July 1941, his Division took up defensive positions on the

Pskov Pskov ( rus, Псков, a=pskov-ru.ogg, p=pskof; see also names in other languages) is a city in northwestern Russia and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, located about east of the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population ...

Velikiye Luki Velikiye Luki ( rus, Вели́кие Лу́ки, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪjə ˈlukʲɪ; lit. ''great meanders''. Г. П. Смолицкая. "Топонимический словарь Центральной России". "Армада-П ...

line between

Lake Ilmen Lake Ilmen ( rus, И́льмень, p=ˈilʲmʲɪnʲ) is a large lake in the Novgorod Oblast of Russia. A historically important lake, it formed a vital part of the medieval trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks. The city of Novgorod - wh ...

and

Lake Seliger Seliger ( rus, Селиге́р, p=sʲɪlʲɪˈgʲɛr) is a lake in Ostashkovsky District of Tver Oblast and, in the extreme northern part, in Demyansky District of Novgorod Oblast of Russia, in the northwest of the Valdai Hills, a part of the Vo ...

. There, they repulsed frequent German attacks against

Leningrad 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 ...

; Idrisov was reported to have killed 22 German soldiers with his machine gun, resulting in him being sent for training to become a sniper. After completing sniper training he was assigned in October 1942 to a sniper group positioned on a section of the North-Western Front where Axis forces were expected to advance. In a period of ten days of intense fighting Idrisov managed to kill approximately 100 enemy infantrymen as a sniper. By April 1943 he was reported to have killed over 300 German soldiers in total, while serving with the 1232nd Rifle Regiment of the

370th Rifle Division The 370th Rifle Division was raised in 1941 as a standard Red Army rifle division, and served for the duration of the Great Patriotic War in that role. It began forming in August 1941 in the Siberian Military District. After forming, it was initial ...

. After participating in the breakthrough of the blockade in Leningrad he fought in the offensives to retake the Pskov region and Baltic states. By March 1944 his tally as reported by his superiors totaled 349 kills and he had been nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union. Idrisov was demobilized in April after he was seriously wounded by a fragment of a mine that exploded next to him. He survived due to his fellow soldiers finding him unconscious and sending him to a hospital, and on 3 June 1944 he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. At a military exhibition his rifle and wartime photographs were put on display with the title "The glorious son of the Chechen people, Hero of the Soviet Union Abukhazhi Idrisov, destroyed more than three hundred German fascists."

Postwar life and exile

Despite his awards and honors for serving loyally in the Red Army he was deported to Kazakhstan after spending four months in the Gorky hospital recovering from his wounds. While in exile he lived in Southwest Kazakhstan and worked on a farm as a sheep breeder. He returned to Chechnya immediately after being granted the right of return and became a member of the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

in 1962. He lived in Chechnya for the remainder of his life and died 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 ...

on 22 October 1983.

Awards and honors

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of th ...

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Idrisov, Abukhadzhi 1918 births 1983 deaths Soviet military personnel of World War II Chechen military personnel of World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Soviet military snipers Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner People from Groznensky District