Mop ups in IDP camps continue. More Chechen IDPs fleeing Ingushetia

• 2004-06-25
• Europa in de wereld

Mop ups in IDP camps continue. More Chechen IDPs fleeing Ingushetia


On June 25 at 4: 30 representatives of Chechen Ministry for Nationalities Svetlichny Vasilij, the representative of MVD Ozdamirov Gekha, the representative of Chechen Republic in Ingushetia Beldurov Gelani, deputy head of migration services of Ingushetia Akhmet Tomov and journalists of Chechen TV channel “Groznyinform” arrived to the compact settlement of Chechen IDPs at a milk farm “Altievo”, where on June 23 tens of young men were detained. The officials interviewed IDPs and human rights activists, the cameramen filmed the site.

At 5 p.m. three detained young man on June 23 came back to the camp: two brothers Akhmadov Tamerlan (born 1980) and Idris (born 1987) and Ulubaev Rustam (born 1980). They were beaten. The young men explained that they were detained at the GUVD of Nazran, heavily beaten, not given food for three days.

When the released boys arrived, a large crowd of people surrounded them, women were screaming and weeping, one got hysterical and fell of the ground in a stroke, two women fainted. The boys were telling about the mistreatment in GUVD. The youngest boy was weeping. The Chechen authorities were indignant. “Grozinform” filmed this scene.

When the television left, the monitors of “Memorial” interviewed the released in their homes. The men said they were beaten by persons in masks speaking Russian. They also said that the Ingush militiamen were not beating them. One Ingush man, who was in the group, which carried out detainment in Altievo on June 23 and promised to take revenge on the detained for his murdered brother, in GUVD was actually helping and bringing the detainees water. “You are not guilty”, he said.

“Memorial” was very pleased that the Chechen authorities and the Chechen TV visited to Ingushetia and took interest in protecting IDPs rights. In fact, this was the first time Chechen TV filmed victims of mop-up operation and made a story about IDP mistreatment in Ingushetia. None of the loud summary executions or mop ups in Chechnya have ever got to the Chechen media.

“Memorial” warns both Chechen and Ingush media, public figures and human rights organizations that they should be very careful in presenting material on the last developments in Ingushetia. Under the present conditions any unbalanced statement or overemotional TV reportage can instigate escalation of ethnic hatreds between Chechens and Ingushis.


At 6 p.m. a mop up operation was carried out in compact settlement “Kristal”. The operation was carried out by federal servicemen. The check up lasted for 20 minutes, no one was beaten or abused. 1 young man was detained. The relatives were informed about the grounds for his detainment (expired identification documents) and the place of his detainment.

Later in the evening in compact settlement “Tsentr Kamaz” in Nazran was carried out a mop up operation, which lasted till 8.30 p.m. The operation was carried out by representatives of unidentified power agencies in masks. The servicemen checked passports and broke into the rooms of IDPs who fled the camp the night before. Then they put all the men to the wall and ordered them to undress to their waist. 8 persons were detained. They detainees were driven in the direction of MVD and UBOP in Nazran.


On June 25 families from IDPs from “Altievo”, Logovaz, SMU-4 and “Agrosnab” compact settlement in Karabulak en masse fled to Chechnya.

In the morning on June 26 10 other men from “Altievo” were released. Some of them were beaten. The released men explained that they were kept all together in one room, taken one by one for interrogation, not given water or food the first 24 hours. The last two days they were treated much better and fed.

According to released men, 8 of their colleagues were transferred from GUVD to MVD:

Taipov Musa,
Makhaev Khizir
Magomadov Aslan
Makhaev Aslambek
Khasimikov Salman
Khasimikov Abubakar


Some of them have been very cruelly beaten, particularly Khasimikov Salman, said the released.