Rights defenders report that relatives of British citizen detained in Chechnya are not allowed to him

Law enforcers would not let relatives of Magomed Abubakarov, a British citizen, who was wounded during detention in Urus-Martan and charged under two criminal articles, to see him, an activist of the "Memorial" Centre for Human Rights Defence* has informed.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on June 1, 2023, Magomed Abubakarov, a native of Chechnya, was detained by law enforcers in his mother's house in Urus-Martan. He was released only on June 27. Abubakarov was tortured, demanding to confess to an attack on militaries in 2009, human rights defenders then informed.

The fate of Magomed Abubakarov, detained by law enforcers on April 4, is unknown, the above "Memorial" Centre* has informed.

"He was under intensive care after intestinal surgery. His relatives were not allowed to see him, although they had promised to let his mother in," said a Centre's source.

According to the source, three other detained residents of Urus-Martan – Arbi and Ismail Ayubov, and Abdullakh Saigiriev – have been released. "According to our information, they were taken to force them to testify against Magomed," the source has added.

*As reported on the website of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the reason for including on March 1, 2024, the unregistered "Memorial" Centre for Human Rights Defence (CHRD) into the roster of foreign agents was the spread of "inaccurate information aimed at creating a negative image of the Russian Federation, as well as the Russian Armed Forces."