Rights defenders predict futility of special operation in Ingushetia

There are practically no active members of the armed underground in Ingushetia, the experts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" are sure.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 13, operative-search actions were launched in the Sunzha District of Ingushetia. In the forests, law enforcers are searching for the grouping of militants headed by Aslan Byutukaev, who is considered to be the organizer of the attack on Grozny in 2014.

The special operation in Ingushetia does not indicate any intensification of the armed resistance in the region, said Sergey Goncharov, the president of the International Association of Veterans of the "Alpha" Antiterrorist Regiment. According to his version, only single members of earlier organized armed groupings may stay in the region.

"Northern Caucasus is heterogeneous. Today, perhaps Chechnya is the calmest region; this is due to Ramzan Kadyrov and law enforcers who control the situation. While Ingushetia, unfortunately, has been troubling our special services for many years because there really are still remnants of bandit formations there," Mr Goncharov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The organization "Imarat Kavkaz" (recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia by the court) has long ceased to exist; its representatives or members are no longer present in the region, Magomed Mutsolgov, the head of the "Mashr" human rights centre, is sure.

He doubts that Aslan Byutukaev, who is suspected of involvement in the terror act in Domodedovo and the attack on Grozny, is hiding in the forests of Ingushetia. "These events were 6-10 years ago; and I don't understand how it is possible to stay for so many years in the forest – just to live like that? There are no grounds to talk about any his influence," Mr Mutsolgov has emphasized.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 16, 2020 at 10:48 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.