Court upholds refusal to investigate extrajudicial executions in Chechnya

The investigators' refusal to initiate a criminal case after the publication of the "Novaya Gazeta" about the killing of 27 residents of Chechnya by law enforcers has been found lawful, a Stavropol court reports.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that earlier the court session was postponed due to the lack of inspection materials. The claimants' representative announced the protraction of the trial.

Back in July 2017, the "Novaya Gazeta" published the names of 27 people detained in Chechnya in December 2016 and January 2017 and executed without trial on January 26, 2017. On August 31, 2018, 15 OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) countries demanded from Russian authorities to report about the inquiry into human rights violations in Chechnya, including the extrajudicial execution of the above 27 people.

However, now the court has ruled that the investigators' decision to refuse to open a criminal case on the publication of the "Novaya Gazeta" was legitimate.