In Chechnya, locals report new detentions of relatives of killed suspects

Relatives and friends of the suspected militants killed in Grozny on December 17-18 have reported new detentions of their family members on December 20 to 22. Meanwhile, according to them, the police do not file any charges against the detainees.

"We find ourselves completely in the dark, in uncertain situation. Our men are being kept at prison, and we cannot organize tezet (a wake for the killed people). And nobody knows what will happen to us next," the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told by a close relative of one of the young men killed in Grozny.

According to the relatives of the killed suspects, the police continue detaining their relatives. This was reported by Islam, a member of one of the Chechen NGOs.

"It is in fact impossible to find out how many people have been detained and how many of them are still kept by law enforcers. All male and in some cases female relatives of the killed men are being brought to the police. Some of them were released after questioning, while others were kept for a day. And some of them are still being kept at the police. Meanwhile, the process is still underway. Just yesterday (on December 22), they took away second cousins of one of the killed men, their father and several other relatives," Islam told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on December 17, attacks on policemen were committed in different districts of Grozny, and after that the CTO legal regime was introduced in the city. According to the law enforcement authorities, during the special operation, continued on December 18, seven suspected militants were killed and four others were detained. On December 19, the "Islamic State" (IS) banned in Russia by court and recognized as a terrorist organization, claimed responsibility for the attacks in Grozny.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.