14:06, 8 February 2024

Rights defenders demand to check version of Seda Suleimanova's murder

Seda Suleimanova. Photo by the SK SOS Crisis Group* (included into the register of foreign agents)

Sources in Chechnya has voiced out the version that Seda Suleimanova was killed by her relatives, the SK SOS Crisis Group* has reported and demanded from the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) and the Russian General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) to conduct a check.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that for 150 days nothing was known about the fate of Suleimanova, who had been taken by her relatives to Chechnya. This was stated on February 1 by her girlfriend who held a picket near the building of the Saint Petersburg Prosecutor's Office.

On August 23, 2023, law enforcers came to the 26-year-old Seda Suleimanova, who had escaped from Chechnya to Saint Petersburg, and to her bridegroom, and detained them, explaining that the girl was suspected of stealing some jewellery. Then, the girl was taken to Grozny. Her advocates were not allowed to see their client. On October 20, Suleimanova's bridegroom, Stanislav Kudryavtsev, announced that he had converted to Islam and asked to meet the girl, but received no response from her relatives.

Seda Suleimanova could have been killed by her relatives, the SK SOS Crisis Group* reports in its website, citing its sources from Chechnya.

Let us recall that back in October 2022, Seda Suleimanova turned to human rights defenders as she was afraid that her family might commit an "honour killing," since her relatives from Grozny were not satisfied with the level of her religiosity.

On August 29, 2023, Mansur Soltaev, the Chechen Ombudsperson, stated, in his report about his meeting with Seda Suleimanova, that the girl was not in danger and in safety. Human rights defenders then noted that a mark similar to a haematoma was visible on the girl's neck.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 7, 2024 at 02:47 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Source: Caucasian Knot