Kadyrov's attitude towards POWs is contrary to Caucasian traditions

The return of prisoners of war (POWs) from captivity back to the special military operation (SMO) zone and public apologies for their captivity became part of the intimidation of Chechen fighters, Oyub Titiev, a human rights defender, has noted. In the Caucasian historical tradition, captivity is not regarded as something shameful, Patimat Takhnaeva, a researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), has pointed out.

The case with an apology for captivity and a statement about the need to "redeem the captivity with blood" can be seen as a toughening of the attitude towards the surrendered Chechen fighters by republic's authorities, Oyub Titiev, a rights defender, believes.

Patimat Takhnaeva, a historian and Orientalist, is sure that the historical tradition has such notions like "honorary captivity" or "inglorious captivity".

Akhmet Yarlykapov, an expert on the Caucasus, has pointed out that captivity cannot be regulated by customs.

"Adats regulate people's daily lives, but the captivity, like military operations in general, is an emergency situation," he believes.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that another Chechen fighter, who had returned from captivity, again went to the SMO zone in Ukraine. On November 9, 2022, Kadyrov announced that Kirgiz Musikhanov, who had returned from captivity, returned to Grozny, and had been treated in Moscow. The head of Chechnya has added that after recovery, Musikhanov intends to return to the SMO zone.