15 February 2021, 18:02
"Novaya Gazeta" makes public investigation into extrajudicial executions in Chechnya
The newspaper "Novaya Gazeta" got copies of photographic tables prepared by the Chechen Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), which contained the information about the detention of 108 people, some of whom fell victim to extrajudicial executions. The "Novaya Gazeta" announced a release of an interview with a Chechen law enforcer who witnessed the executions.
Elena Milashina, an author of the article, emphasizes that the article "Execution after death" posted today by the "Novaya Gazeta" is just the first part of the journalistic investigation. "In this text, each fact has been officially confirmed by departmental documents, sentences entered into force, materials of criminal cases, investigative checks of reports of a crime, and protocols of trials. All eyewitness testimonies concerning the described events are documented in accordance with the laws of the Russian Federation," the article says.
The "Novaya Gazeta" got "the original table prepared by the Chechen MIA, with the information about 108 people detained in December 2016 and January 2017, and, most importantly, with their colour photos," Elena Milashina explained. The MIA's table lists 26 people from the "execution list."
On July 23, 2019, "Novaya Gazeta" newspaper and several human rights organizations made public the testimonies of persons who witnessed the detention of Chechen residents from the "execution list." Human rights defenders noted that the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) refused to institute criminal proceedings on the possible killing of 27 people.
The second part of the journalistic investigation "will be released shortly," Elena Milashina assures. "In the second part, we will inform our readers about the circumstances of the mass detentions of Chechen residents during the so-called special measure operations, carried out by an order of Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya, in January 2017. We will also post an interview with a fighter from the Kadyrov regiment, who participated in those special measure operations and witnessed the execution of the detainees," the article states.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 15, 2021 at 02:34 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
