Kadyrov treats protest of Ingush residents against works on Fortanga bank as provocation

The protest against the works of strengthening the Chechen bank of the Fortanga River was organized in Ingushetia by "a handful of provocateurs," Ramzan Kadyrov has stated. In their turn, his critics believe that Chechen authorities should have warned the Ingush party of the planned works in order to avoid unrests in the neighbouring republic.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 11, Chechnya began works on the bank of the Fortanga River, along which the border with Ingushetia passes. This caused indignation in Ingushetia, which assumed that Chechnya was trying to change the course of the river. On November 12, residents of the Sunzha District gathered for a rally, but officials persuaded them to disperse, promising to solve the problem. An official from the Sernovodsk District of Chechnya has explained to the "Caucasian Knot" that Fortanga waters were diverted only temporarily in order to carry out the bank protection works.

The works performed by the "Chechenavtodor" on the bank of the Fortanga could not affect the border with Ingushetia, Magomed Daudov, the Speaker of the Chechen Parliament, has stated. He was supported by Instagram users who criticized Ingushes for artificially escalating the conflict.

The conflict arose because the Chechen party had failed to warn the Ingush one about the works on the river bank, said one of the leaders of the 1ADAT oppositional movement.

Let us remind you that the agreement on the Chechen-Ingush border, signed in September 2018, led to mass protests in Ingushetia. Activists accused the then head of Ingushetia, Yunus-Bek Evkurov, of transferring part of the Ingush lands to the neighbouring republic.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 14, 2021 at 12:39 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.