Kadyrovites

File:Kadyrov Army.jpg

Ramzan Kadyrov together with some of his men in 2006.

Kadyrovtsy ([Кадыровцы, Kadyrovcy] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help)) also Kadyrovites and Kadyrov's Spetsnaz ([Кадыровский спецназ, Kadyrovskij specnaz] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help)) is a term used by the population of Chechnya, as well as members of the groups themselves, for former members of the paramilitary units of the former President of the Chechen Republic Akhmad Kadyrov, headed by his son and the current President Ramzan Kadyrov.

History and organisation

Katyrovtsy, thousands of armed men personally devoted to the Kadyrovs and including many former rebels from the Chechen wars, were initially created as a personal security guard (Presidential Security Service) of the Moscow-appointed head of the Chechen administration, Akhmad Kadyrov, without any formal legal status, and gradually grew into a powerful militia formation commanded from the beginning by his son Ramzan Kadyrov. Gradually, its sub-units were legalized to become parts of different structures of the Chechen Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD).

After Akhmad Kadyrov was killed in a blast in May 2004, the Security Service was formally liquidated and most of the rest of its units integrated into the system of Russian law enforcement agencies and security authorities. In the Interior Ministry, two units: "Akhmad Kadyrov" Second Road Patrol Regiment of the Police (PPSM-2) and the Oil Regiment (Neftepolk, headed by the Kadyrov's relative Adam Demilkhanov) were formed of Kadyrovtsy gunmen, as of 2005 comprising around 1,500 to 2,000 men.

As of 2006, the total strength of the Kadyrovites, which by then included the PPSM-2, the Oil Regiment, and so-called Anti-Terrorist Centers (ATCs, then commanded by Muslim Ilyasov), was not disclosed, but most estimations spoke of around 5,000 people. Some of the gunmen are completely legalized into structures of the Chechen government's power structures, while others, estimated at at least 1,800, continued to exist in the form of paramilitary formations. In mid-2006 the ATCs were closed down, and some of the members were transferred to the newly-formed GRU Spetsnaz Battalions Sever (South, led by Ilyasov and composed of an estimated 500 men) and Yug (North, led by Delimkhanov and composed of an estimated 700 men).

Human rights violations

A significant number of members of these groups are people with a criminal past, including people who had committed criminal offences in the period between wars. Particularly feared are the PPSM-2, named after Akhmad Kadyrov, and the Oil Regiment. Officially PPSM-2 is responsible for security on the streets and the Oil Regiment for the security of industrial sites. In reality both structures are involved in so-called anti-terrorist operations, according to human rights groups accompanied by grave human rights violations. Human rights activists working in Chechnya have said the group has been involved in kidnapping, torture and murder to cement Kadyrov's rule.

Notable incidents

Conflicts with the forces of President Alkhanov

Main article: Armed incidents in the Alkhanov-Kadyrov power struggle

Killing of the separatist President Sadulayev

On 17 June, 2006, a group of the Kadyrovites and the FSB officers killed the President of Ichkeria Sheikh Abdul-Halim, whose body was driven to Tsentoroi and presented to Ramzan Kadyrov.

Goretz unit mutiny

Main article: Gorets mutiny

See also

• Federal government in Chechnya
• Ramzan Kadyrov
• Second Chechen War

External links

• Ana Politkovskaya's last article: Punitive agreement by Anna Politkovskaya
• New Chechen Army Threatens Moscow

Video

• Russian TV on the Chechen MVD forces
• Revival of Brutality in Chechnya (The New York Times)