CHECHNYA LINKS LIBRARY

"Mopping-up" operations by federal forces have not undergone any change

Ruslan Isayev, North Caucasus, July 26 - „Mopping-up“ operationg carried out by federal forces in Chechnya have not undergone any change and human rights continue to be grossly violated during them.

In July 19-23 the Russian military conducted a „mopping-up“ operation in the village of Elistanzhi in the Vedeno district. People who for fears that the operation will be repeated left for Ingushetia after the operation ended said that they had been horrified by the behaviour of the Russian forces during the operation.

On the first day almost all the male population was driven to an outer part of Elistanzhi. Some of them were beaten. Of the 50 males, 14 persons remained in the hands of the Russian military after the operation ended and, according to the inhabitants of Elistanzhi, all of them were beaten and tortured by electricity. Torture by electricity is the most common method of torture nowadays and there exist even armoured military vehicles adapted for it.

During the operation 70-year-old resident of Elistanzhi Adlan Alabayev was cruelly beaten after he stood up for a young male whom soldiers were going to torture. Local clergymen were subject to especially cruel treatment and the imam of Elistanzhi and two his deputies were beaten right in the local mosque.

The house of the Yangulbayev and Tokayev families were set on fire and grenades were thrown into the house of the head of Elistanzhi administration. The whereabouts of local residents Magomadov, Abdurzakov, Khajimuradov, Mindiyev, Jabrailov and Khadisov are still unknown. The soldiers took away two motorcycles belonging local residents and then blew them up. They also took away two UAZ vehicles, one of which belonged to the Vedeno district sanitary and epidemiological service.

On the same day (July 19) the village of Zandak in the Nozhai-Yurt district came under mortar shelling. Local people claimed that the fire came from the place where the local military headquarters are located.

On the following day the head of the local administration tried to find out the reason for the shelling. He learnt at the local military headquarters that the shelling was carried out in line with the regulations from the general headquarters in Khankala and that it was aimed at the place where a large group of Chechen fighters was discovered. He was shown a plan of the village of the year 1980 and the square at which the shelling was aimed. However, since 1980 the village has expanded and now is 3-4 kilometres wider. As a result, several local residents have suffered various injuries due to the shelling.

(T)