Chechnya’s parliament unanimously confirmed Ramzan Kadyrov as the republic’s prime minister on March 4, two days after Chechen President Alu Alkhanov nominated him to replace Sergei Abramov, who resigned in late February. Kadyrov had been serving as acting prime minister since Abramov was in a... MORE

March 8 also marked the first anniversary of the killing of Chechen separatist leader Aslan Maskhadov, which was the subject of commentary in both the Russian media and on separatist websites. In a statement posted March 8 on the separatist Chechenpress news agency’s website, separatist... MORE

Following the condemnation by Movladi Udugov, the Chechen separatist official from the movement’s radical wing, of Hamas’ decision to accept President Vladimir Putin’s invitation to visit Moscow, Akhmed Zakaev, who represents the separatist movement’s moderate wing, also weighed in on the issue. Udugov, who heads... MORE

The Chechen separatist Daymohk website on March 13 posted a video clip of what it said was Chechen Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov “in a bath-house scene” with prostitutes. The website said it received the clip from the “jamaat IBADULLAH” and claimed it was filmed at... MORE

Kavkazaky Uzel reported on March 15 that Chechen law enforcement was trying to track down the kidnappers of Abdul-Vakhab Akhmadov, the head of the finance department of the republic’s Ministry of Housing and Municipal Services. On March 10, the 44-year-old Akhmadov, a resident of Urus-Martan,... MORE

Kavkazcenter reported on March 10 that some 100 members of the pro-Moscow Chechen police force loyal to Ramzan Kadyrov had defected to the rebels in early March. Citing unnamed sources in Chechnya, the separatist website reported that most of the police officers who, along with... MORE

Kavkazky Uzel reported on March 14 that the widow of Rustam Nafedsev, one of the rebels killed in the attack on Nalchik, Kabardino-Balkaria, last October 13, had filed suit in the Nalchik District Court against the republic’s Pension Fund for refusing to grant her social... MORE

Ramzan Kadyrov, the newly appointed prime minister of the pro-Moscow Chechen government, is continuing to introduce Islamic ethics to government practices (see Chechnya Weekly, March 6). After criticizing the local media for broadcasting “immoral programs” and implementing censorship, Kadyrov has now declared that lessons in... MORE

Chechen Labor and Social Development Minister Magomed Vakhaev on March 22 called for a series of amendments to the republic’s constitution, including changing the age requirement for the Chechen president. “In the Constitution of the Chechen Republic there are quite a few norms, provisions, which... MORE

Nezavisimaya gazeta reported on March 22, the Chechen parliament on March 21 called on the federal authorities “to change the existing mechanism for forming and distributing profits from oil extracted on Chechen territory.” The deputies complained that revenues from the export of Chechen oil are... MORE