- Kadyrov Appoints His Cousin Prime Minister The Associated Press reported that Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov announced on March 8 that he had nominated his cousin, Odes Baisultanov, who was previously a first deputy prime minister in the republican government, to be Chechnya’s prime minister.... MORE

On the evening of February 15, 2007, Ramzan Kadyrov, at that time still Chechnya’s prime minister, prayed together with members of his family in his native village of Tsentoroi. According to his press service, later that evening Kadyrov received the news from Moscow that President... MORE

Chechnya’s parliament confirmed Ramzan Kadyrov as the republic’s president on March 2, just one day after he was nominated by President Vladimir Putin (Chechnya Weekly, March 1). According to Reuters, 56 of the parliament’s 58 deputies cast their ballots for Kadyrov, with one voting against... MORE

Observers in Moscow continued to mull over the significance of Ramzan Kadyrov’s elevation to the post of Chechen president. The daily Vedomosti on March 2 quoted an anonymous Kremlin source as saying that no special demands had been made on Kadyrov in return for his... MORE

In a statement posted on the separatist Daymohk and Chechenpress websites on March 5, Dokka Umarov, president of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (ChRI), called on Muslims in the Caucasus to join the “jihad” against Russian forces and Chechnya’s pro-Moscow government. In response to the... MORE

Nearly 10 gambling establishments were vandalized by unknown persons in Maikop, Adygeya, Kavkazky Uzel reported on March 5. The website cited the city’s prosecutor, Andrei Fatin, who told Itar-Tass that more than 100 people were involved in the attacks on the gambling establishments on March... MORE

In November 2001, Akhmad Kadyrov, then head of the pro-Russian administration in Chechnya, declared that “there is no more need to use aviation and artillery in the region” and that “the police should fight with the remnants of the rebels” (Newsru.com, November 12, 2001). Five... MORE

President Vladimir Putin announced on March 1 that he was nominating Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya’s acting president, as the republic’s new president and was submitting Kadyrov’s name to the republic’s parliament for its approval. According to Newsru.com, Putin made the announcement during a meeting with Kadyrov... MORE

A human rights conference organized under the auspices of the Chechen government was set to open in Grozny on March 1, with some leading Russian and international human rights groups boycotting the event and top Chechen government officials criticizing them for doing so. On March... MORE

Council of Europe Commissioner on Human Rights Thomas Hammarberg was the only major Western figure set to attend the Grozny human rights conference. Hammarberg arrived in Chechnya on February 26 for a three-day visit. According a Council of Europe press release that was posted on... MORE