Mystery surrounds Kadyrov assassination attempt

TEXT: Artyom Vernidoub, Boris Sapozhnikov  PHOTO: www.vremya.ru
 
In the latest attempt on the head of the pro-Moscow Chechen administration 3 special-purpose policemen were reportedly killed and four guards wounded as Akhmad Kadyrov's security personnel repulsed an attack on his motorcade. One of the assailants was killed while the others managed to escape.

This latest attempt on Kadyrov's life took place on Saturday, but only on Monday morning did the reports hit the headlines. The information was not communicated through the usual official channels, but by anonymous sources in the law-enforcement agencies. Those sources described how Kadyrov's motorcade came under fire in Argun, Chechnya's third-largest town, at the intersection of Gudermesskaya and Sakharozavodskaya streets - the route Kadyrov often takes on his regular journeys to his home village of Tsentoroi. 

Those reports were thrown into doubt on Monday, however, as Ruslan Alkhanov, Kadyrov's security chief refuted reports by some media about the alleged attack. Alkhanov declared that special forces ensuring the security of the republic's head commanded by Ramzan Kadyrov conducted an operation in the town of Argun to eliminate a group of Wahhabites who, according to operative information, intended to perpetrate acts of terror against the republic's top officials. During the exchange of fire, Alkhanov said, three militants were killed and three detained. 

This contradicts earlier reports by the unofficial sources that claimed: ''Four employees of the security guard service of the head of the Chechen administration sustained injuries, 3 Chechen OMON policemen, who had come to the aid of the security guards, were killed. One of the assailants was killed.'' 

Yet another source - an official at the Chechnya representation office in Moscow - told Gazeta.Ru that, according to his data, not one but several assailants were killed. With regards to the casualties among the Chechen policemen, our interlocutor said he had no information confirming media reports. 

Deputy to the presidential envoy for Chechnya, Vakha Baibatyrov, said: ''Presently, we have not been able to contact Grozny and to find out any additional details, but yesterday my brother called me and recounted how it happened.'' According to Baibatyrov, the motorcade came under intense small arms fire in central Argun. ''There are no ruins in that street - there are residential houses, where people live. Several bandits were eliminated in the clash.'' Our interlocutor could not confirm whether the OMON policemen died, but said that four of Kadyrov's guards were injured. 

According to Baibatyrov, rebel bullets also hit Kadyrov's armoured car, but he escaped unharmed. He could not say how many cars there were in the motorcade, but said that usually there are 3 - 5 cars, preceded by a traffic police car. 

''They were shooting from both sides, which is typical for the rebels, hence such losses among Kadyrov's guards,'' an official at the Argun mayor's office told Gazeta.Ru. ''In which car Kadyrov was travelling I do not know; he has many cars, they all are armour-plated, that is why he was not hurt. The firing came from Kalashnikov assault-rifles and grenade launchers,'' he said. The official confirmed that one of the assailants was killed. His body was transported to the Argun police directorate, but his identity is yet to be established. 

Gazeta.Ru has been told that Akhmad Kadyrov's motorcade came under rebel fire literally an hour after he held a session dedicated to the forthcoming constitutional referendum in Chechnya. 

On Saturday high-placed guests from Moscow, namely the head of the Central Election Committee Alexander Veshnyakov and a group of international observers from the OSCE, who are to monitor the voting on March 23, arrived in Grozny. A day earlier the presidential aide for Chechnya Sergei Yastrzhembsky visited the Chechen capital, where he criticized the Chechen authorities for not using all the resources available to them to better inform the public about the forthcoming referendum and even urged them to use "graffiti" instead of posters, which are often removed by those who oppose the restoration of constitutional order in the province. 

Yastrzhembsky was accompanied by the deputy chief of the Kremlin administration Vladislav Surkov who announced that Moscow is considering granting Chechnya ''extensive autonomy'' within Russia. Obviously, by taking the risk of going to Chechnya in person, the high-placed guests from Moscow aimed to show Chechens how serious they are about the referendum. 

Speaking at a meeting in Grozny with the Chechen leadership and the heads of Chechen districts Vladislav Surkov said Vladimir Putin is ready to grant Chechnya extensive autonomy within Russia. ''In future, an agreement to be concluded between the federal centre and the Chechen Republic may stipulate extremely flexible schemes for the existence of the Chechen Republic as part of the Russian Federation. Acceptable forms can be found even for those who haven't until now wanted to see themselves as part of Russia,'' he said. 

After the Saturday attempt on Kadyrov's life it became clear what risk the federal officials were taking by travelling to Grozny. Yet, while Surkov travelled through several Chechen settlements incognito, Veshnaykov and the OSCE observers openly visited polling stations. Veshnaykov no longer seemed as pleased with the performance of the republican electoral officials as he was at the CEC session held in Moscow a day earlier. Veshnyakov noticed that there were no visual signs of campaigning, such as promotional posters, in the streets. 

Veshnyakov has already left Chechnya, while Yastrzhembsky still remains in the troubled province. On Monday morning he talked to the press at the Khankala military base. The presidential aide again said there should be more posters in the streets, and praised United Russia's Chechen branch for actively joining in the campaign. As regards to the security situation, he said: ''It is absolutely obvious that the power-wielding agencies are making additional efforts.'' 

It remained unclear whether Yastrzhembsky was informed of the attack on Kadyrov. But even if he was, it is unlikely that he would be impressed by the report. As a source close to the head of Chechen administration told Gazeta.Ru, their boss has lost count of the attempts on his life, which have always failed to even slightly injure him. 
03 ????? 16:13