A Chechen gym teacher was killed in fighting in Ukraine.

Vakhit Menziev from the Naursky District of Chechnya was killed in combat. Since the beginning of the Russian operation in Ukraine, authorities have publicly named at least 261 Chechen servicemen killed there.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," by March 11, authorities had officially recognized at least 4,355 fighters from the North Caucasus Federal District killed in Ukraine, including 260 from Chechnya.

A school in the village of Mekenskaya in the Naursky District of Chechnya is holding events in memory of physical education teacher Vakhit Menziev, who did not return from the combat zone. According to colleagues, Menziev is survived by two children.

Menziev is a graduate of the Meken School, and has worked there as a physical education teacher since 2015.

“With the start of the special military operation (SVO), Vakhit was one of the first to volunteer to defend the interests of his homeland. He was wounded in one of the battles, but barely made it back to his own people and underwent treatment in Rostov-on-Don. In April 2023, after rehabilitation, he returned to Ukraine and has been missing in action since July 4, 2023,” reads a post on the school’s VKontakte page.

Thus, at least 261 servicemen from Chechnya have been officially recognized as killed on the Ukrainian front (authorities have released the names of 238 of those killed; Ramzan Kadyrov announced the deaths of another 23 soldiers on October 27, 2022, without naming them). The Caucasian Knot is maintaining a list of names of natives of the North Caucasus and Southern Federal Districts killed in the military operation. The list is based on data officially released by government officials and security agencies, according to the Caucasian Knot report "North Caucasus Military District Statistics: Casualties Are Growing for Southern Russia."

In early March, the names of two more Chechen combatants killed in the Vedensky District—Zelimkhan Batukayev and Alkhazur Saikhanov—were released. District authorities in Chechnya rarely report the number of fighters killed; information is typically published by the republic's "Defenders of the Fatherland" Foundation and local television stations, reporting on awards presented to relatives.

The actual casualties among combatants from the North Caucasus may be significantly higher than officially acknowledged. This situation is common throughout the North Caucasus Federal District, but is particularly acute in Chechnya. In February 2023, Ramzan Kadyrov called on regional leaders not to disclose the number of those killed. "I don't understand when regional leaders trumpet the number of those killed in the North Caucasus Military District. My question is: why? Don't manipulate the topic of our heroes, writing that this many died in this region, and that many in another," he said. State awards, memorial plaques, and appearances on Channel One do not guarantee state support for the families of those killed, according to the Caucasian Knot article "Three Comrades Served: How the Authorities Are Depriving the Families of Killed Volunteers of Benefits." Thus, without documents confirming that a soldier participated in combat operations and died in the Northern Military District, it is impossible to access benefits, such as a free place in kindergarten, or apply for payments from the military registration and enlistment office, according to families who encountered problems obtaining official documents from the unit.