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Singer Milana Balayeva shot in Grozny

By Ruslan Isayev

GROZNY, Chechnya – In an incident in the Chechen capital the well-known Chechen singer Milana Balayeva has been seriously wounded, and her mother has been killed. The tragedy took place late at night at an apartment block  on the recently rebuilt Mozdokskaya Street, 100 metres from the government buildings.

Several men broke into the apartment in which the singer Milana Balaeva lived with her 41-year-old mother. Both women were shot at point-blank range with Makarov pistols. 10 cartridge cases were found at the site.

The mother died on the spot, and her daughter Milana was taken to City Hospital No. 9 with serious wounds to the face and abdomen. The doctors there assess her condition as critical. Later on Russian soldiers came to the hospital and most probably took her to a military hospital.

The reasons for the shooting of the two women are not known, but law enforcement agencies say that  preliminary reports suggest there may have been a dispute about the apartment in which the two women lived.

(D/T)