[RFE/RL] The head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, has promised to help Chechens who are fighting alongside the Islamic State to return home. He said, "We are doing everything possible so as not to swell the ranks of these devils."Kadyrov said that his men were working not only in the Chechen Republic but "also there, on the ground," in Syria, without elaboratation. He said, "We are bringing back those who have realized their mistakes and we are passing them on to the courts."
Kadyrov sees himself as playing a key and very personal role in the fight against Islamist extremism in the Chechen Republic, and reacted with anger to the issue of Russian nationals from the Chechen republic becoming radicalized and fighting in Syria and Iraq.
The Chechen leader, who earlier denied that Chechens were fighting in Syria at all and recently insisted that most Chechens there are from the diaspora in Europe, has even exchanged insults with Chechen insurgents in Syria.
Kadyrov said that his main goal was to "save at least one human life, if possible."
"We have no intention of destroying even those who raised weapons against us. I have negotiated with many militants and, more often than not, managed to convince them to lay down their weapons," he said.
The main topic of Kadyrov's press conference had been the March 2 surrender of Zelimkhan Magomadov, a Chechen militant who had been surrounded by police on the southern outskirts of Grozny. Kadyrov spoke with Magomadov, who was known as the "Emir of the Chechen Plains", personally and persuaded him to step down, according to reports.