Kadyrov boasts that Chechen children pray for success of SMO

Children all over Chechnya are praying for the participants in the special military operation (SMO) in Ukraine, who "defend religion" in Donbass, Ramzan Kadyrov has boasted. He has explained that his daughter is the initiator of such actions.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the head of Chechnya also boasted about the participation of his three underage sons in the battles in the SMO zone in Ukraine, and the fact that three prisoners of war (POWs) were taken to Grozny at the behest of his kids. The Chechen state TV Channel released a report, in which Kadyrov's sons were shown in a trench; however, social media commentators doubted that the report was filmed during a battle on the frontline. Their doubts were confirmed by the blogger, Tumso Abdurakhmanov, who pointed to signs of editing in the video report.

All over Chechnya, with the active participation of children, prayers are pronounced for SMO participants, who defend religion "from the encroachments of the henchmen of the damned Iblis (the devils' (shaitans') leader in Islam) in Donbass," Kadyrov has stated in his Telegram channel. According to his story, "Muslims of different ages" take part in collective prayers, including "the youngest residents."

In the video posted in Ramzan Kadyrov's Telegram channel, several dozen girls are dressed in hijabs coloured as the Russian flag.

The head of Chechnya has noted that his daughter, Khadizhat Kadyrova, the head of the department of pre-school education at the Grozny Mayoralty, has been "initiating the activities with the participation of children in support of the SMO for several months now."

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that back on March 25, 2022, Kadyrov informed about mass prayers in support of the SMO fighters. Parishioners are forced to take part in these prayers, the author of the blog "Chechnya Inside" that he runs on the "Caucasian Knot" has suggested; and social network users have confirmed in their comments that in Chechnya, the state servants, who receive their salaries from the state budget are gathered in mosques under the threat of dismissal.